Mr. Magical Girl

Chapter: 135. Well of Chaos (6)

After smashing the ground several times, I finally arrived at my target location.

A sewage system with murky wastewater.

Where I had been recently.

Thud.

Landing on the path, I swapped my drill back to a hammer and looked around.

So, this is where I ended up after all that circling.

If only Old Man Ri had told me sooner, I wouldn’t have wasted so much time. Or did I go somewhere else and Taejoon Kim escaped?

Hmm. The information is lacking.

Just as that thought crossed my mind, a smile crept onto my lips.

What does it matter?

With Old Man Ri saying that, Taejoon must be here, and all I need to do is take care of that guy.

Suppressing the emotions rising within me, I lifted the corners of my mouth.

What on earth could be here…

Just as I was trying to track down Taejoon’s scent to pinpoint his exact location.

Gurgle.

A strange scene came into view.

The sticky wastewater that had filled the sewer. It had been so thick that nothing was moving in the central channel, but for some reason, it was flowing quickly now.

Like a river, it moved swiftly and naturally.

And I could also smell Taejoon Kim coming from the direction of the flowing sewage.

I can’t make sense of this.

What in the world is going on?

I’ve experienced all kinds of bizarre phenomena, but it’s been a while since I encountered a situation this perplexing.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been living here comfortably for about a week? It feels like my once familiar routine has been sullied.

But it doesn’t matter.

If a brainy hero like the Librarian were here, they’d probably ponder over this phenomenon, but I’m a physical type hero.

I just need to smash the enemies in front of me.

With that thought, I stomped forward.

Thud.

The ceiling collapsed, bricks showering down, and the pipes warped as they collided.

As a result, the sewage began to pour down like a waterfall, but since it had already spilled where I had passed, it didn’t directly affect me.

Ravaging everything in sight, I continued to dash forward.

Without a glimmer of light, the pitch-black sewer…

Amidst the foul smell and faint odors.

Chasing the flow beneath my feet.

To the place where the root of it all lies.

I just kept running.

How many minutes did I sprint like this?

A light appeared in my field of vision.

An odd light, red and blue, seeping into the walls of the black sewer.

Have I arrived?

I wanted to keep going, but soon I had no choice but to stop.

The bottom vanished at the end of the sewer, where I had been running.

A steep cliff appeared before me.

What is this hole?

Leaning out, I looked down, but there was no ground in sight.

It was a deep pit that couldn’t possibly be considered normal.

To figure out the nature of this pit, I scanned my surroundings.

Usually, a place underground would be dark and visibility poor, but this space rejected such common sense.

Red and blue light crawled up the walls, illuminating them.

However, that light was anything but normal.

Is there really a light in the world that doesn’t illuminate its surroundings?

The light crawling up the walls dyed them in shades of twilight, red and blue, allowing me to see its form clearly.

Yet, the center of the pit was different.

Blackened darkness seemed unaffected by the light creeping along the walls.

Where there should be light illuminating the darkness, the darkness stubbornly held its ground like a pillar.

I attempted to infuse my eyes with mana to shatter that darkness, but I received nothing in return.

Reluctantly, I turned my head to examine the pit’s walls.

Countless exits.

Sewage pouring from those exits.

Waterfalls made of sewage.

A bottomless pit where all the sins of Nanjido seemed to rush downward.

I wondered if I could ascend, but the only scent present was the stench of sewage.

…I guess I have no choice.

I braced myself at the edge and hurled myself into the darkness.

It felt like an endless fall.

With no air resistance, my clothes didn’t flutter, and not a chill ran over my skin.

All that existed was endless acceleration.

In the midst of my continuous descent, I organized my thoughts for the final battle.

A distorted light.

Nonexistent air resistance.

The sticky sewage that had vanished.

Distortion of physical laws.

I tried to recall memories, but I had no recollection of hearing the voice of otherworldly erosion.

So… is it another world, or am I inside this hole?

Hah.

A sigh escaped me.

I came looking for just one Taejoon Kim, and I ended up on a tour of another world. What a ridiculous situation.

To put it precisely, it doesn’t seem like I’m in another world yet.

The laws of physics appear to be functioning surprisingly well.

At least I’m still falling downward, and my senses feel intact.

That means basic physical laws follow our side.

Then, I should be nearing the hole or might already be inside it.

“I’ve never felt a hole like this before…”

If this location is indeed around the hole, a force with physical power would surely be swirling about.

A special case? Or perhaps it isn’t a hole at all?

Whatever it is, there’s definitely something akin to it.

“I should have brought Unho along.”

At the pace things are going, even a D-grade monster could pop up, and I’d think, ‘Oh! That makes sense!’

In that case, I need to unleash all my limits…

What’s the point of regretting now?

I should make do with what I have.

Inside the hole, no less.

With a time limit pressing on me.

Unho isn’t even here.

Hah. What a laugh. Hah.

My dry laughter echoed through the tranquil pit.

As it bounced back to me, I continued to fall.

How long did I fall?

I must be getting closer.

The ground, layered in alternating shades of red and blue, came into my view.

I would soon clash with the ground.

Preparing for that, I summoned my hammer.

Normally, it wouldn’t be necessary, but…

Whoosh!

Flames burst forth from the hammer towards the ground, slowing my descent.

In a normal physical world, I’d be fine no matter where I fell, but under the current laws of physics, there was no guarantee that my body would hold up.

So, I used the hammer to slightly lift myself off the ground and spun it as I lightly landed on the surface.

Thud.

Upon properly landing, I took steps toward the center while checking my body.

I rotated my shoulders.

No issues with the shoulders.

I gave a sharp nod.

No issues with the head.

With one hand, I grabbed my wrist and shook the other wrist with my opposite hand.

No issues with the wrists.

Before setting my feet on the ground, I lifted my legs.

No issues with the legs.

There were no problematic areas.

Then, shall we go?

Kicking off the ground, I dashed toward the center of the pit.

A place where darkness poured forth.

A place where all filth gathered.

A place where a person stood.

And he turned to look at me.

The moment I saw his face, a thought crossed my mind.

…Is he really the same person?

Too different from the one in my memories.

The neatly dressed and calm man in a suit seemed to have vanished, replaced by a completely ruined figure.

Did he start losing hair in patches?

His hair was riddled with holes.

Misaligned jawline.

Sunken eyelids.

Gaunt cheekbones sticking out.

The mold of a once decent-looking man hadn’t changed, but everything else was shattered.

“Wow—ahhhh!”

He opened his mouth.

I could see inside his mouth.

Missing and broken teeth.

The reason his jaw was in such a state must be that.

“That damn Black Marauder, do you know how happy I was because of you?!”

His voice radiated genuine happiness. I could even feel an illusory happiness myself from this bizarre manipulation of emotions.

He’s lost it.

“That happiness destroyed me! Thanks to you, I met him! He even gave me candy! How pitiful!”

Even as I got closer, he spread his arms wide like it was all an act and spoke utter nonsense.

Candy… Does he mean that black seed?

Corruption.

Now it’s clear.

Then, there’s no need to show him mercy.

He’s corrupted, so even if I smack him with the hammer, he’ll probably remain alive.

Raising my body, which had been slammed against the ground, I grabbed the hammer tightly.

Before he could do anything, I wanted to finish this.

Putting all my power into it.

Thud.

I arrived right in front of Taejoon with just a single step.

Faced with him, a nauseating smell wafted into my nose.

Even I, used to the scent of Nanjido, found this smell unbearable.

The stench of a corpse emanating from a living human body.

Swinging the hammer to erase the root of it all.

With my limits far overhead, I swung hard.

Filled with my anger.

A colossal shockwave surged forth, shaking Taejoon Kim’s body, yet he didn’t wipe the smile off his face.

Raising his arms to praise the heavens, he continued to laugh.

Even as the shockwave rumbled through him, he paid no mind, still laughing.

Well, if that’s your choice.

You should survive even if I blow away your lower half.

The hammer connected with Taejoon’s skin.

A solid sensation.

I definitely dealt damage…

Huh?

The sound of a string being plucked echoed.

Taejoon Kim disappeared.

Dammit.

The instant I realized Taejoon had vanished, I threw my hammer aside and summoned the Gauntlet, wrapping it around his neck.

Thud.

The hammer, flung aside, shook the earth.

Boom.

Amidst the massive roar, a delicate metallic sound rang in my ears.

The twisted Swordbreaker.

The moment I confirmed that, I flicked my limbs backward.

Huh.

The sound echoed, and he vanished.

“…What is going on?”

I shot a question into the darkness.

Silence returned.

Huh.

All that came back was the sound of the strings.

Clang, clang, clang.

A pitch-black dagger whirled through the air at incredible speed.

I immediately re-summoned my hammer and deflected a multitude of attacks, but I couldn’t stop the numbing pain spreading all over my body.

Lightly sliced elbows.

Severed fingertips.

A straight line scar on my forehead.

They weren’t lethal, but they were threatening enough.

I kept enduring all of them, and finally, after what felt like a downpour of attacks, I entered a long-awaited lull.

…Is it over?

Then first, my bleeding wounds.

I activated the special function of my clothes to stop the pouring blood while simultaneously speaking.

“Queph, what are you doing?”

I addressed the distant rat monster.

He was still breathing heavily, looking like the attack had winded him.

…Something feels off.

Is Queph trying to catch his breath?

This guy who boasts overwhelming speed?

Feeling the oddity, I stared intently at him, and Queph raised his head.

With blood-tears flowing down and foam spilling from his mouth, he seemed to be raising his hand as if to attack.

Jit.

Reluctantly, I raised my hammer to block the attack.

Clatter.

But Queph’s Swordbreaker slipped from his hand.

He reached into his own pocket.

“Coolly…”

Slowly…

Spitting blood, he pulled out a green rod.

…Wasn’t that a healing potion? What on earth is happening?

I didn’t understand the situation and waited for a moment.

Queph pressed the rod to his heart.

Gulp. Cough. Cough…

In what seemed like pain, Queph kept spitting out blood while staring at me.

“…What now, Queph?”

Blood spilled forth.

“Run away…”

“Miss Haram…”

“…They…”

Before Queph could finish, another sound rang out.

An explosive sound, like explosions were erupting from the core.

Splash. Splash.

The sound of the core falling into a puddle.

(Everything is spiraling into darkness?)

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