Chapter 32

◈ Chapter 32: Steps Toward the Truth (1)

Rudger headed towards the entrance of the secret laboratory, which was disguised as a large sewer pipe.

It looked real with rust in various places and a strong stench, but as he went a bit deeper, everything changed.

The inner walls became clean, and the stench disappeared.

Murmurs.

From beyond, a faint crimson light and such sounds could be heard.

Rudger immediately stifled his presence and moved slowly.

“Ah, I’m so bored. How much longer do we have to stay here?”

“I don’t know. We still have more than two days, so we have to wait a bit longer, right?”

“Why would those damn test subjects escape?”

“It’s fine as long as we don’t get caught. We’re also planning to clean up and leave just in case.”

“Still, it’s better to stand guard like this. It’s a mess inside with all the equipment being cleaned up and whatnot.”

“Anyway, it’s almost time for the shift change.”

“Ah. If only those bastards hadn’t escaped.”

Rudger leaned against the wall, listening to their conversation.

The two, bored with just standing guard at the entrance, didn’t stop chatting.

“Why did it happen like that? Did they manage it poorly?”

“There was a mistake. The kid we kidnapped didn’t react well to the drug, so the transformation into a Cryptid was incomplete. It was probably because he was too young.”

“So what happened?”

“What do you mean, 'so what'? When they tried to administer more of the experimental drug, the kid resisted.”

“I heard that administering the drug is extremely painful. Is that true?”

“Judging by the screams, it must be. But the problem was that the parents went ballistic.”

“What? The parents? Even after they had already turned into werewolves, they tried to protect their child?”

“Yeah. The scientists didn’t expect them to still have some sanity left. They went berserk beyond what the scientists anticipated, turning the inside into a mess.”

“Damn. So that’s why they escaped. Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Ha! Dangerous? Don’t worry. I heard we’ve asked a reliable person to handle it. Anyway, if I had been there, I would have stomped that brat to death. He made us suffer so much.”

That’s it.

Rudger felt he no longer needed to eavesdrop on their conversation.

He knew everything that had happened.

Splash.

The sound of Rudger stepping on the pooled water made the two, who were chatting, immediately shut up and look in his direction.

“Who’s there? Who’s there?”

“Is it a rat?”

The entrance was illuminated by magical lamps, but because of this, the area where Rudger stood was even darker and invisible.

The two drew their guns from their waists.

But before they could do anything, two beams of light flew from the darkness and pierced their foreheads.

Thud! Thud!

Without even a scream, the two guarding the entrance collapsed.

It happened in the blink of an eye.

Rudger slowly walked out of the darkness.

He wore leather boots that reached his shins, black pants, a gray vest with many pockets, and a shabby brown coat.

His face was covered by a black hood that reached his nose, and a hood that fell over his forehead.

Rudger, moving silently like a ghost, passed the bodies and headed towards the inside of the secret laboratory.

Not long after he entered,

A scream echoed from inside.

* * *

“Ah! Help me!”

A man patrolling near the entrance was desperately running away from the monster that had appeared from the darkness and killed his comrades.

He didn’t know where the monster suddenly came from.

It appeared like a mirage and killed the comrades he was patrolling with in an instant.

‘What did those guards at the entrance do?’

Just as he thought that, his vision flipped.

“Huh?”

His body tilted and he fell forward. His legs below the shins felt weak.

“Why, why?”

He looked down at his legs and realized what had happened.

His legs below the shins had been cut off.

The pain hit him a moment later.

“Gasp!”

He clenched his teeth and glared into the darkness behind him.

The large tunnel beyond was pitch black, with all the lights out.

Footsteps echoed from there.

His spine chilled, and his hair stood on end.

It was the monster.

The intruder who had suddenly appeared and killed all his comrades was already chasing him.

Thud.

The intruder slowly emerged from the darkness.

His face was completely covered, making it impossible to identify him.

But his muscular build clearly indicated he was a man.

He warned in a trembling voice.

“You, you. Did you think you could touch us and get away with it? You don’t know who’s inside, do you? You’re finished.”

The man didn’t respond.

Instead, the shadow between his hooded eyes became even sharper.

His lips were dry, and his throat was parched.

Just as he was considering whether to beg for mercy, a group of people rushed from the tunnel.

“Here! The sound came from here!”

Mercenaries with magical lamps approached from a distance.

They all had firearms, and among them, a heavily armed giant stood out.

The man, spotting his comrades coming to rescue him, shouted.

“Hey! Over here! Over here! Hahaha! You’re finished! In this narrow passage, you’ll be like a beehive... Gasp!”

Rudger stabbed the dagger into the mouth of the man who was shouting. When he pulled it out, blood spurted, and the body fell to the side.

Just then, the reinforcements spotted Rudger.

“Over there! Shoot him!”

Truly well-trained, the mercenaries didn’t even ask who he was and immediately aimed their guns.

Rudger stood still, as if rooted to the spot.

“Shoot!”

They pulled the triggers, but nothing happened.

“Huh?”

“What, what’s going on?”

Click. Click.

No matter how hard they pulled the triggers, no bullets came out. The guns weren’t broken; the gunpowder had been neutralized.

A cold sweat trickled down the cheek of the leader who had given the order to shoot.

He knew from experience what this meant.

“[Silence of Fire]! It’s a mage!”

A considerable amount of time had passed since the advent of firearms.

Yet, mages and knights still held prominent positions in the world.

The reason was simple.

Firearms were not a threat to mages and knights.

Knights, with their superhuman physical abilities, could easily dodge or cut ordinary bullets.

On the other hand, mages didn’t need to do that.

The [Silence of Fire] spell they used made it possible.

[Silence of Fire]

This spell suppresses the performance of gunpowder within a certain range centered on the mage.

When used by a 3rd-tier mage, it can render machine guns ineffective.

When used by a 5th-tier mage, it can neutralize cannons.

When used by a 6th-tier mage, the Lexar class, it can change the course of a war.

This is why mages and knights maintained their positions even in the age of firearms.

However, the highest tier of magic Rudger could use was 3rd-tier.

Realizing he couldn’t go beyond that, Rudger compensated by enhancing existing spells.

For a typical 3rd-tier mage, the effective range of [Silence of Fire] is a maximum of 20 meters.

For Rudger, the effective range of [Silence of Fire] was...

– A staggering 200 meters.

“Damn it! Everyone, draw your swords!”

The judgment of the people from the Shamshu school was quick.

They discarded their now useless firearms and immediately drew their swords and clubs.

Crackle.

Electricity flowed over the clubs.

Rudger raised both hands.

In each hand, he held a revolver.

“You fool! Using [Silence of Fire] makes your weapons useless...!”

Bang!

The man who was mocking Rudger fell backward, blood spurting from his forehead.

Everyone watched the scene with pale faces.

What just happened?

“What, what...”

“How...?”

Rudger clearly fired his gun, but what he shot wasn’t a bullet.

It was magic.

More precisely, a shaped magic projectile.

Thus, there was no sound when he fired, and it wasn’t affected by [Silence of Fire].

“Y-You...”

“Did you want a fair fight?”

Rudger mocked the soldiers as he fired magic projectiles at them.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Even though it seemed he was shooting randomly, the gunshots accurately hit their foreheads, blowing off their heads.

In an instant, blood and screams filled the air.

“Damn fools! Everyone, get back!”

A giant in heavy armor stepped forward. The reinforced armor, made of black synthetic metal, easily deflected the magic projectiles Rudger fired.

It was an exosuit, an external suit developed through advanced engineering.

Though slow, it was extremely sturdy and could exert immense force, making it suitable for anti-knight combat.

This will be a bit troublesome.

“Die!”

The giant in heavy armor spread his arms wide and charged at Rudger.

His approach, with heavy footsteps, exuded a tank-like intimidation.

Rudger didn’t panic or fear.

After holstering his revolvers, he drew two crescent-shaped karambit daggers from his waist.

“A mage trying to engage in close combat?”

As he reached out to grab Rudger’s collar, Rudger’s