The massive fireball closed in right before my eyes.I spun my circles with all the power I could muster.
'Resonance Ring, Amplify!'
I invoked the Resonance Ring to magnify my spell's output—then converted my mana to the water attribute and raised a Water Shield.
Fsshhh—!
A clash erupted between the fireball and the wall of water.Billowing steam poured out between the two opposing forces.
'The power's too strong!'
Even with the Resonance Ring's amplification—and with my elemental advantage—this gap should've been more than enough to overcome a one-circle difference.Under normal circumstances, I should have blocked it easily.
Fsshhhhh—!
Yet, despite that, the 3rd-circle fire spell Flare Ball kept eating away at my Water Shield.
"Ugh!"
The boiling steam and heated spray seared my skin.At this rate, I'd be burned to ash along with the shield itself.
'No good holding it. I need to dodge.'
Finishing the calculation, I twisted my body to the right.
'Fix!'
At the same time, I poured the remainder of my mana into the Water Shield,engraving its structure so it would hold form even after leaving my hands.
The instant that was done, I kicked off the ground.
Fsshhhh—!
I managed to fix it, but as my body moved away, the shield's power weakened—and it was devoured almost instantly by the Flare Ball.
Kwaaaang—!
Even after consuming the Water Shield, the fireball still had energy to spare.It slammed into the spot where I had been standing a moment ago,melting the asphalt like a scoop of ice cream.
'Didn't get clear perfectly.'
The hurried shift from defense to evasion left my posture unbalanced.My dodge wasn't complete.The edge of the explosion scorched part of my left arm.
Just a glance told me it was easily a third-degree burn.
'At least… it still moves.'
Being able to fight with both arms was fortune enough for now.
"Kh, khkhkh… HAHAHA!!"
Laughter echoed.A twisted, frenzied laugh—gleaming with delight and hysteria.
"Yeah… that's it. That's the real difference between you and me! HAHAHA!!"
"...Baek Sahyuk."
It was Baek Sahyuk, the Baek family's eldest son, glaring at me with bloodshot eyes.
"You defective trash! That's what happens when you keep crawling up like you're worth something. Got it? Huh? Do you get it?!"
He clearly wasn't in a normal state.What I'd thought were merely bloodshot eyes were actually burst capillaries—and red welts and ruptured veins marred his skin.
'Signs of illegal drug doping.'
The classic after-effects of combat stimulants.And not the mild kind, either—the kind only desperate soldiers in losing wars would use,classified as Risk Level 1: Berserker.
"...You really have lost it."
Once taken, the user can't stop fighting until death.Mana circles accelerate uncontrollably, bursting every vein in the body—turning them into blood-soaked madmen.That's where the name came from: Berserker.
Baek Sahyuk had taken that insane drug.
"Lost it? No… never. I'm perfectly sane. In fact, this is the first time I've felt normal!"
He slammed his foot against the ground.Empowered by Berserker's effects, his mana and physique surged.
"...!"
In an instant, he was right in front of me—his hand lashing out to grab me.
"Now I can kill you however I want! That's normal, isn't it?! Hahahaha!!"
Mana concentrated in his palm.
'Burning Impaction!'
The same 3rd-circle spell he'd once tried to use on me.And this time, it ignited right before my eyes.
"Tch!"
I swung his arm upward—intending to neutralize it the same way as before.
But—
"Too late, you bastard!"
Baek Sahyuk was no longer the same man.Before I could even hit his arm, Burning Impaction detonated.
Piiing!
The focused heat of a miniature sun condensed at a single point—its mana far beyond what any 3rd-circle spell should hold.It shot straight for my forehead.
Tssss—!
The sound of flesh cooking filled my ears.The left side of my face and ear were scorched;the agony numbed my thoughts.
"You blocked that…?"
Baek Sahyuk frowned in irritation.
'…That was close.'
At the very last instant, I'd managed to deflect his hand—just enough to skew the spell's angle.Twisting my head aside, the blast merely grazed my cheek.
"My spell… blocked twice? By you? A worthless reject? You dare—DARE?!"
He roared like a beast.
"Hmph. Well, that can happen."
Then, just as suddenly, his rage vanished.He straightened, calm again—grinning as he retreated ten meters.
'…That mood swing. No doubt. Berserker.'
Every sign confirmed it.Baek Sahyuk was under Berserker's influence.
'But… his spell power. Something's off.'
Even with Berserker, a mage's magic shouldn't strengthen this much.That absurd casting speed and output—it made no sense.
"What are you staring at, you piece of shit?"
He jeered, his tone flipping back to manic.
"Scared? Gonna piss yourself? Thinking about kneeling?"
Mana surged violently around him—a turbulent current resonating with his murderous intent.
'So it's not just Berserker…?'
The sheer density of mana didn't belong to a 3rd-circle mage.
'Let's confirm it.'
I lowered my stance and fired a spell.
'Wind Spear.'
My signature spell—and Baek Sahyuk's personal nightmare.
The spears of wind shot toward him.
"You bastard…"
Maybe recalling the humiliation from before,his face twisted ferociously.
"With this trash spell?!"
He fired a flame spell to erase the four Wind Spears.Judging by its strength, it was a 4th-circle-level blast—ridiculous overkill for such a small threat.
"You were right to watch out for double-casting."
But that was overreaction.
"You shouldn't focus only on the Wind Spear."
"...You son of a—!"
That's why you left an opening.
If he'd just used a moderate spell,he wouldn't have left himself exposed like this.
Using that instant of distraction,I closed the gap and unleashed another spell.
A wind-element blast radiated outward from his position—Aero Boom.
'Direct hit?'
It struck Baek Sahyuk squarely, shredding his body.
I'd expected him to evade, but he didn't.Was his mind dulled by Berserker's frenzy?
As I pondered it—
"Khihihi! Drop dead, Shin Hayul!"
Even after taking the hit, Baek Sahyuk screamed—as if nothing had happened at all.
Mana surged all at once.
'Red!'
Crimson mana scattered widely above Baek Sahyuk's head.It was his specialty — the fire-attribute spell, Flame Shotgun.
I immediately kicked off the ground, putting distance between us.
'Flame Shotgun's key trait: short range.'
Its effective reach was only 7.74 meters.As long as I got beyond eight, I'd be safe.
Fwoooosh—!
When I'd made it about six meters away,Baek Sahyuk's Flame Shotgun fully took form and roared toward me.
'At this speed, I'll be outside its range before it hits.'
I was just about to plan my next move—
'That smile…'
Something about Baek Sahyuk's grin caught my eye.It wasn't the manic, erratic smile of a Berserker.It was genuine. Calculated.
'…No way.'
A possibility flashed through my mind.
That casting speed.That overwhelming spell power.That confident smirk.The timing of his ambush.
It all fit.
'Leng Smith. And the IL Chip.'
The Black Tower was behind this.
'If Baek Sahyuk has an IL Chip implanted, then the Flame Shotgun's range isn't eight meters anymore!'
I immediately changed my plan of evasion.Even after passing the supposed eight-meter safe zone, I kept running.
'If my calculation's right…'
The incoming Flame Shotgun drew ever closer.I circulated mana through my lower body, reinforcing my physique.
And finally—I reached the exact point I'd aimed for.
'The Flame Shotgun's range is 9.12 meters!'
Ten meters away from Baek Sahyuk,I stood my ground and watched the fire surge toward me.
'Bingo.'
Fsssss—!
The massive flame filled my vision—and then vanished perfectly one meter before reaching me.
The spell had dissipated, having reached its extended but still finite limit.
"You… how did you…?"
Baek Sahyuk furrowed his brow, confusion twisting his face.He didn't understand what had just happened.
I met his gaze and lightly brushed my burned arm and cheek.
'Innovation-Leveling Chip. Berserker. Leng Smith.'
So this was his doing.
'Leng Smith had marked Baek Sahyuk as the one to attack me on Friday.'
He'd planned to make Baek Sahyuk assault me,then "intervene" midway—framing me as an illegal A.I. user in the ensuing chaos.
'Leng Smith specializes in mental manipulation magic.Controlling someone like Baek Sahyuk, who already holds hatred toward me… wouldn't have been difficult.'
If Baek Sahyuk killed me, even better.That was probably his plan.
'…Didn't see this coming.'
That was my mistake.The moment I learned Leng Smith used mind-control magic,I should've accounted for a third-party contingency.
But I'd relaxed after capturing him.
'Careless. I'll have to reflect on that.'
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
"You hate me so much you'd use an IL Chip?"
"IL Chip? What the hell are you babbling about?"
Baek Sahyuk sneered,his face blank with incomprehension.
"Yeah. As I thought—you don't remember."
He didn't remember taking Berserker.Didn't remember the IL Chip being implanted.Didn't remember Leng Smith being the one who did it.
He'd forgotten everything.
"If you're gonna spout nonsense, do it in hell!"
Baek Sahyuk launched another spell.Three Flare Balls hurtled toward me.
"The IL Chip is an illegal, modified artificial intelligencethat boosts the user's body and enhances spell formulas."
I bent low, planting my hand on the ground.The Flare Balls scorched past just over my head.
"Its effects alter measurable parameters like power and range."
The Flare Balls exploded twenty meters away—far beyond their normal fifteen-meter limit.
"But that's all it changes.Things like trajectory control stay exactly the same."
Feeling the searing heat sweep by from behind, I rose to my feet again.
"The same goes for Berserker.It only amplifies spell power through forced circle acceleration—it can't alter the spell's inherent structure."
"What the hell are you even saying, you worthless rat?!"
Baek Sahyuk bellowed,casting yet another spell.
'Green.'
The color of wind-attribute mana.Maybe he realized fire wasn't working,so now he was trying wind.
'3rd-circle magic: Wind Knife.'
A blade of air took form in his hand.
Before he even fired it,I stepped backward.
"And here's the irony.What I'm researching right now—is how circle structures and mana variations affect spell output."
19.77 meters.
I stopped precisely there,watching as the Wind Knife shot toward me.
Whoooosh—!
It reached my face—and vanished a hair's breadth in front of my nose.
0.1 centimeters short.
"Thanks to that, I'm rather well-versed in how spells changeunder amplified mana and accelerated circles."
With just data on the IL Chip's mana distortion rateand Berserker's circle acceleration,this level of prediction was trivial.
"And honestly…I'm not sure if I should call this lucky or disturbing."
I exhaled softly.
"Who'd have thought I'd get the final clue to Resonancefrom illegal A.I. tech and banned stimulants?"
Watching Baek Sahyuk's spells,I had finally grasped the last missing piece of Resonance.
"What the hell are you yapping about, you piece of shit?!"
He roared, charging straight at me.
I met his wild eyes and breathed out lightly.
"I won't thank you.It's only a difference of whether I completed this at dawn… or right now."
Something stirred within me.
A pure, ringing hum filled my body.The clear sound of the Infinity Circle spinning.
Two circles that had once resonated separately—now aligned.
Merged.
And became one single, unified sound.
'Resonance '
The Ring of Mind and the Resonance Ringhad finally fused into perfect harmony—rotating as one.