Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

Chapter 149: Grimoire

Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

149 – Grimoire

The moment Byung-tae heard the word ‘magician,’ he recalled a conversation he had with Myung-jun.

Myung-jun had explained that every Awakener’s ability had a counter-ability, and his own abilities were no exception.

At that time, Byung-tae had asked Myung-jun,

‘But isn’t your ability to create thousands of pieces of equipment to handle any situation? Then you can just make equipment to counter any opponent, right?’

‘Usually, yes. But no matter how many types of equipment you create, there are abilities that are difficult to counter.’

‘What are those?’

‘Magic. Unless one side is overwhelmingly stronger, technology alone can never defeat magic. If technology is developed to overcome all physical laws, magic is a concept that ignores those laws altogether.’

‘Then we need to bring in a concept that can counter magic. But don’t worry too much. Magic users are extremely rare, and if such a powerful magician existed, they would have become famous by now.’

‘So, even if there are magic users, they won’t be that strong?’

‘Yes. And even if you fight a magician of similar level, there are ways. Just as technology counters magic, magic also has counter attributes.’

‘A counter to magic… What is it?’

‘That’s… Oh, wait a moment. My senior is calling me.’

Byung-tae frowned as he tried to recall the conversation with Myung-jun.

However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t remember hearing about the counter attribute to magic.

Since the conversation had ended abruptly, they had never discussed the topic again.

Realizing this, Byung-tae screamed internally,

‘I didn’t hear the most important part!!!’

While Byung-tae was internally lamenting, Alex, who was standing in front of him, also had a serious expression as he conversed with someone.

‘He looks strong.’

‘You blocked his attack earlier, didn’t you?’

‘Of course, that wasn’t all he had. Should I run now?’

‘Don’t talk nonsense. As long as I’m attached to your left hand, you’re invincible. Besides, my pride won’t allow the owner of Origin to run away from such a weakling.’

‘Weakling? Him?’

Hearing the voice in his mind, Alex looked at Byung-tae.

He couldn’t tell what Byung-tae was thinking, but he saw him standing there, bristling with deadly weapons and glaring at him with wary eyes.

To Alex, Byung-tae looked like he could single-handedly annihilate an entire army.

And at that moment,

“Intruder alert? Are you kidding me?! Who the hell is it?!”

The door on one side of the test room flew open, and a man in massive mechanical armor entered the room.

Seeing the man, Alex cheered internally,

‘Wow! It’s Lee Ho-chang! And he has his shield! Should I ask for an autograph?!’

‘You crazy idiot! Keep your face straight! How did I end up with such a lunatic…’

‘Sorry…’

‘Listen carefully, Alex. You’re not here for sightseeing. You came to the heart of the world’s strongest clan, the Liberal Clan, to declare yourself as a rival to Cha Myung-jun, the man considered the strongest Awakener in the world. If you act like this, what do you think Cha Myung-jun will think of you?’

‘He might think I’m a fan?’

‘He’ll ignore you. So, follow my instructions. If you do as I say, you’ll achieve everything you want. And I still can’t stand that you idolize trash that uses <science>.’

‘What’s wrong with science?! It’s awesome! Powerful firepower that can take on a carrier strike group alone! Power armor that can easily block missiles! Giant robots that can split buildings in half in an instant!’

‘Everything you mentioned can also be done with magic! Ugh! Just focus on the plan for now! Let’s defeat those two and show Cha Myung-jun your true power!’

‘Got it.’

As Alex opened the book in his left hand, a massive green magic circle formed around him.

Seeing this, Byung-tae shouted to Ho-chang,

“Hyung! Be careful! That guy uses strange abilities!”

“Strange abilities?”

“All the weapons I attacked with turned into glass shards! And he introduced himself as a magician!”

“Magic, huh…”

Ho-chang, clad in power armor, picked up a piece of the shattered punching machine from the floor.

He then hurled it at Alex with tremendous force.

– BOOM s-

Even though he threw it by hand, the sound of compressed air exploding accompanied the piece of metal flying towards Alex with immense power. Alex hastily waved his hand.

Dozens of fluorescent vines extended from the green magic circle on the floor, grabbing the metal piece. Seeing this, Ho-chang charged at Alex with his shield in front.

‘What should I do? Can I turn it into glass?’

‘Not that. Make it slip.’

“Grease!”

Instantly, the floor Ho-chang stepped on became slippery as if waxed, causing him to lose his balance.

Losing his footing, Ho-chang slid past Alex and crashed into the wall of the test room.

– KWANG! –

“Hyung!”

“Damn it! I’m fine! What the hell, is this magic too?”

“It’s a spell called Grease. It makes the desired area slippery.”

‘Don’t explain to the enemy!’

‘Oh, sorry.’

At that moment, Byung-tae, seizing the opportunity, fired hundreds of bullets at Alex.

Thousands of fluorescent vines that had grabbed the metal piece earlier blocked all of Byung-tae’s bullets.

“Let’s see if you can still cast spells if I destroy the magic circle!”

Ho-chang slammed his shield into the ground with immense force, causing numerous cracks to spread towards Alex.

Seeing this, Alex urgently flew backward, while Byung-tae, now in his fighter jet form, charged at him.

“Try blocking this too!”

As guided missiles launched from Dog Fight rushed towards him, Alex quickly began evasive maneuvers.

He then extended his palm, creating dozens of ice bullets and firing them at the missiles.

“You think you can block them with mere ice…”

– BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!! –

“…Did that actually block them? What the hell?!”

Byung-tae felt a sense of disbelief as he watched the guided missiles turn into chunks of ice and fall to the ground with strange explosions.

At the same time, Ho-chang pulled his shield from the ground and charged at Alex.

‘Attack.’

‘But…’

‘I said attack! Do you want Cha Myung-jun to arrive and see you defeated by his subordinates?’

Alex imagined himself lying defeated in front of the two when Myung-jun arrived.

With a chilling expression, he muttered,

“…I don’t want that.”

At that moment, an unknown aura emanated from Alex, filling the test room.

He seemed like a completely different person.

Alex’s movements, now imbued with this new aura, were on a different level of speed.

“What the hell?!”

Alex disappeared from sight, reappearing right in front of Byung-tae, who couldn’t help but curse.

Before Byung-tae could react, Alex, with a menacing look, placed his hand on the armor of Dog Fight.

“Grease.”

Instantly, Byung-tae’s vision was filled with countless warning messages.

「Warning. Critical damage. Bolts from A1 to D442 have been disengaged.」

「Warning. Critical damage. Main power transmission system damaged. Timing belts and gear systems in various parts broken.」

「Warning. Critical damage. Main equipment securing mechanism damaged.」

「System maintenance impossible. Forcing system shutdown to prevent further damage.」

What Alex had used was a basic spell called ‘Grease,’ which adjusted the friction coefficient of specific objects to make them slippery.

However, instead of casting it on the ground, Alex cast Grease on all the internal components of Dog Fight.

Every bolt and screw could no longer stay in place.

All the tightly fitted components, except for welded parts, were dislodged.

It was an absurd counter skill that disrupted the fundamental operating principles of mechanical equipment.

“Byung-tae!!!”

Seeing Dog Fight fall helplessly to the ground as if its engine had been turned off, Ho-chang let out a roar of rage.

He then charged at Alex with insane speed.

“Void Shield! Maximum output activation!”

[Void Shield maximum output activation.]

With the familiar system message that had protected him from countless threats, a soft blue light emanated from the shield he held.

It was the light emitted when the extra-dimensional field generator, which made his shield nearly invincible against not just physical impacts but also heat, cold, and various chemical attacks, operated at maximum output.

‘No matter how powerful the magic, it can’t penetrate this.’

At that moment, time seemed to slow down infinitely for Alex as he saw Ho-chang’s eyes filled with absolute certainty.

This was due to the ‘Haste’ spell forcibly activated by the Grimoire, which judged that Alex’s body was under threat.

‘Haste? Why?’

‘Oh, that looks tough. It’s not just a simple physical object.’

‘So, can’t we block it? Should we dodge?’

‘No. Do it like this.’

Alex listened to the whispers of the Grimoire.

Holding the spellbook open, he began to chant a spell towards Ho-chang.

To him, it felt like a normal pace, but to Ho-chang, caught in the slow flow of time, it seemed impossibly fast.

“Power that governs time and space, hear my voice. With the authority granted by the origin of all magic, the beginning of spells, make this formidable foe before me vanish from sight.”

“What kind of trickery is this?!”

Ho-chang urgently raised his shield, but regretfully, the spell Alex used was not an attack.

“Forceful Banishment.”

In an instant, Ho-chang’s body disappeared in a blinding light.

Simultaneously, at the top of Liberty City, far from the test room, Ho-chang appeared with his shield and began to plummet with a scream.

“What is this nowwwwwwwww?!”

At that moment, Byung-tae, who had pried open the cockpit of the now-disabled Dog Fight, crawled out into the test room.

Ignoring Alex, who stood alone after making Ho-chang disappear, Byung-tae glared at him with a murderous look.

Perplexed by the deadly gaze, Alex asked why he did not feel fear in the face of an opponent whose powers were utterly ineffective.

“Aren’t you afraid?”

“Afraid? Of you?”

“You should be. You’re facing an opponent whose abilities are completely ineffective against you.”

“Sorry, but I’ve had that experience countless times. The experience of facing an opponent who you can’t beat, no matter how much you pour in all your effort. And soon, you too will feel exactly that.”

Alex’s words were cut short.

The moment he tried to continue, a massive explosion brought down one side of the test room’s wall.

Through the flying rebar and concrete debris, Alex saw the eyes of a colossal steel giant glaring at him.

Then, Byung-tae, coughing up blood from the injuries sustained during the fall, spoke to Alex.

“Cough. See? What did I tell you?”

With a smile, he looked at the giant robot and said,

“You’re done for.”

The identity of the steel giant that had burst through the wall of the building where the two were, was ‘Cain’s Legacy’—the Knights.

Summoned by Myung-jun, who had rushed in a rage upon discovering his most cherished subordinates being unilaterally defeated.

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