Seoul Prison. The break room.

For those living the rigid life of the incarcerated, the lunch break was one of only two daily tastes of sweet freedom. Having finished their meal, the prisoners were sprawled out, casually unwinding.

"Phew, I'm drenched after that run. What's with this weather?"

"You said it, boss."

"Turn on the AC."

"On it."

A prisoner with a shaved head pressed the air conditioner's power button. An old, grinding sound echoed through the room, and a moment later, cool air began to flow out.

"Ah, that's refreshing."

"Now I can finally breathe."

'Stomp. Stomp.'

"Hey, you here for some of this cool air, too?"

'Stomp. Stomp.'

"Ugh…"

"You okay?"

'SLAM!'

"…A-A-AAAAAAAAGH!"

The man suddenly started screaming at the top of his lungs, smashing the air conditioner with his fists.

"Whoa, what's wrong with him?"

"What are you doing?! Stop him!"

The other inmates tried to pull him away, but the man, foaming at the mouth, shoved them aside and continued to demolish the unit. He even knocked it to the floor and began stomping on it like a madman, shattering its frame.

The prisoners' expressions hardened.

"…What the hell? What's his problem?"

"Heard he destroyed the one in the laundry room last time, too."

"Seems like he's got some kind of trauma."

A guard appeared behind the panting man. "That's enough!"

Only then did his rampage cease.

"Inmate 1756, Oh Bonggyu. You have a visitor."

He turned to the guard with a murderous glare. "…Who is it?"

"Go and see for yourself."

After being cuffed, Bonggyu entered the visitation room. Beyond the glass partition sat the very man who had haunted his dreams, a faint smile on his face.

Bonggyu gritted his teeth. "Kim Yusin…!"

"It's been a while, Mr. Chairman," Yusin said.

He plopped into the seat opposite Yusin and flashed a greasy smile. The two were now face-to-face, separated by a single pane of glass.

"Have you come to mock me?" Bonggyu asked.

"Something like that."

"Pffft! Heh! Hahahahahahaha!" Bonggyu's mad laughter boomed through the room. "So young. Yes. So very, very young."

'Thwack.'

He planted both elbows on the table and leaned toward Yusin. "Didn't I tell you before? Everyone makes mistakes when they're young. It's how you learn."

"I don't recall."

"But it seems that doesn't apply to you. A moron who repeats the same mistake is incapable of a single shred of growth." The corner of his mouth curled up. "You should have killed me back then."

Yusin remained silent.

"But you didn't. And that was a truly irreversible mistake." Bonggyu spread his arms wide. "I am a publicly certified Rank-3 Healer! Unfortunately for you, this country is suffering from a shortage of healers, so they can't kill me. They'll try to use me no matter what, even if it means reducing my sentence! And is that all? I was once the head of an organization. I have vast slush funds and powerful connections. There's already no one in this prison who hasn't taken my money! I guarantee you, I will be out of this place within a year."

He continued, "The moment I get out, I swear I will deliver the most gruesome destruction this world has ever seen. Next time, it won't end with just that girl. Your family, friends, colleagues—I will grind up every single person connected to you and make you scoop them up with your bare hands and eat them. They will all die cursing your name. And in the end, you too will beg me to kill you." As if thrilled by the very thought, Bonggyu shivered with delight.

Yusin, who had been listening with a bored expression, his chin propped on his hand, finally spoke. "That's been your problem from the very beginning."

"…Hm?"

"You run your mouth too much. The second something happens, you start rambling on about how great you are. If I tied you up and threw you in the ocean, you're the kind of bastard whose mouth would be the only thing left floating." Yusin rustled around in his pocket and pulled out a cinnamon candy—a palate cleanser he'd grabbed from a restaurant before coming. There had probably been other fruit flavors, but as always, only cinnamon was left. Yusin, however, was quite satisfied. "To be precise, I didn't come here to mock you. I came to confirm something."

"Confirm what?"

"My own state of mind."

Yusin rustled the plastic wrapper open. When the brown candy was revealed, he popped it into his mouth. "For a magician, mental fortitude is everything. I wondered, he's a piece of trash, but is it really okay to kill him? What if some lingering shred of mercy in my heart keeps bothering me? I came because of worries like that, but as expected, you're a bastard who deserves to die."

'Crunch, crunch.'

Watching Yusin chew the candy, Bonggyu laughed. "Pffft! So, how do you plan to kill me? I'm in a safe prison! Are you going to smash through the glass right now and strangle me? Huh? Tell me how you're going to kill me! Tell me! Hahahaha!"

"Visiting time is over," the guard announced.

At the guard's words, Yusin pushed his chair back with a scrape and stood up. "Let me make a prediction. You'll be ruined because of that mouth of yours."

Bonggyu looked at him, confused.

Turning to leave through the opposite door, Yusin glanced back one last time and grinned. "So long, newbie."

* * *

At the same time, a visit was underway in the adjacent room. The visitor was Changshik Yoo, the founder of the party 'One Pride' and the man who had recently ignited the 'Healer Union Incident.'

"…I have no excuse, sir," said the man in the prisoner's uniform. He was Yoo Cheonyeong, a former member of One Pride. During the incident, he had followed a healer's orders to subdue his own party member, Changshik, and hand over an artifact. He then used that healer's connections to join a mid-tier guild. But when the media brought the incident to light, he was tormented by guilt and eventually turned himself in. He later appeared in court as a witness for Changshik.

"Even now, I don't know why I did that," Cheonyeong wept, clutching his head. "I shouldn't have given in to a threat like that…"

"…It's all in the past," Changshik said.

The two men were silent for a long moment. Still crying, Cheonyeong continued, his voice thick with memory. "The moment we defeated the boss monster, I think I was lost in a happy dream. A year's worth of mana stones, the Rank-5 certification exam within reach, my wife waiting at home with our baby on the way… I was completely absorbed in the thought that I could finally make my family happy."

He let out a sigh like a lament. "But the moment that healer threatened to destroy it all, I was terrified. I was afraid everything would get twisted and ruined. It was all just in my head, but suddenly, you felt like an obstacle in my life. So… so I…"

"Yeah, I know," Changshik said calmly. "I wasn't being greedy for the artifact. I should have been prepared for that kind of situation the moment we hired a healer from the Union."

"…Sir."

Tears and snot streamed down Cheonyeong's face. "I have… nothing to say… I'm truly…"

"That's enough." Changshik stood up. "I've seen your sincerity, and I've let it all go. Now it's your turn to overcome your guilt in there. You're still young. You have to take the certification exam when you get out."

"…Sir."

Changshik turned back and nodded as a guard opened the door. "I'm running a chicken joint in Hwagok. Bring your family and stop by sometime. I'll cook you a rich soup to get your strength back."

Cheonyeong bowed his head low, tears pouring from his eyes.

After the visit, Changshik left with the guard. As they walked down the corridor, he stopped abruptly. "…Oof, my stomach. Must've been something I ate last night."

"What's wrong?" the guard asked.

"I suddenly need the restroom."

"The restroom? Ah, you can use the one in the staff lounge. It'll be quiet since it's lunchtime."

"Oh, thank you."

Clutching his stomach, Changshik hurried into the staff lounge restroom. After confirming he was alone, he lowered the toilet lid, sat down, and took a small note from his pocket.

"Haah."

His expression changed completely. He closed his eyes and focused. Changshik was a non-combat provisional player, and all he possessed was a rather minor communication-type skill: 'Parrot.' It was an ability that forced a target to repeat his words—a useless skill in an era of advanced communication devices, abandoned much like himself. But right now, this Unique Ability was all he had.

He closed his eyes, his concentration sharpening.

'Vwooooom!'

He could feel the mana of every person within a one-kilometer radius. Finding his target among them was not difficult. He wasn't after the 'tail,' but the 'head'—a man the law could not kill.

It was time for Bonggyu to pay for his sins.

* * *

"Pffft! Hahaha!"

Bonggyu returned to his cell, where his cellmate looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Looks like something good happened, boss."

"Indeed. I came face-to-face with my goal and was reminded of it. A very good thing," Bonggyu said with a smile, sitting down and opening the book he had been reading. "Have you eaten?"

"Of course. Ever since you got here, we've been getting special meals. My stomach's been having a field day."

"That's good to hear." Bonggyu idly flipped through the pages. "The controller is the artificial life form, Ea. As a homunculus, she coordinates the tower's functions."

"…Huh? What are you talking about all of a sudden, boss?"

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you just say something?"

"I didn't say a word," Bonggyu replied.

The cellmate flinched. "…Hey, don't be creepy."

"What are you talking about? I didn't say anyth— It exists up to the 9th floor and possesses 9,985,652 mana." Bonggyu clamped a hand over his mouth. "Wh-what the…!"

Just then, the crest of the Magic Tower on his shoulder began to emit a bluish light. He felt the mana flowing through his body pull taut.

'What is this…?!'

Something was wrong. Even when he pressed his lips shut, even when he covered his mouth, his mouth opened and his tongue moved against his will. "Location is mana coordinate PXI175. PXK195. PXU155…"

A mana reflux ignited an excruciating pain, as if his stomach were being boiled from the inside. He shot to his feet and paced the cell like a madman. "Ugh! Aaargh! St-stop! PXA545! PXC5478! PXR988! PXX3123…!"

'Crash! Thud!'

He tripped and fell, sending his pillow and blanket flying. His eyes bloodshot, he howled in pain and tore the pillow to shreds, white stuffing exploding into the air. "Modification formula by PTYAS 789 is… Bleeegh!"

He began to vomit bright red blood. His cellmate, utterly terrified, could only tremble at the far end of the cell, clinging to the bars. He now had bloodshot eyes, veins bulging all over his body, and a continuous stream of bloody clots—but still, his mouth kept moving.

It was Mana Reflux. Not even 'Rapid Growth' could stop this.

Thrashing in agony, Bonggyu belatedly recalled something. 'That girl, Jin Bora… she was spouting strange things right before she coughed up blood, too.'

It had to be an ability that brought death upon revealing the organization's secrets. And then he remembered what Yusin had said just before leaving.

'So long, newbie.'

No way.

No way.

No way…!

"Blerrrrgh!" Bonggyu spewed a torrent of blood onto the floor.

'Yusin Kiiim!'

It was Kim Yusin's doing. He wanted to scream the bastard's name, to let everyone know who was killing him. But he couldn't. His mouth continued to spew information about the Magic Tower, encrypted in the Erendel language and arcane formulas. He tried to cover it, but his body wouldn't obey. "HSTS 515! @#%!'&$%!"

He was dying in the exact same way Bora almost had.

'Thud!'

His body slammed headfirst into the wall and slid down, leaving a crimson smear like a brushstroke of wet paint.

"Hey! What's going on?!" Guards burst in, having hurriedly unlocked the door.

"Gaah. Kegh!"

"Bonggyu! Snap out of it! Open your eyes!"

With a trembling, blood-soaked finger, Bonggyu drew a long horizontal line on the wall. As his finger fell again, beginning to form a 'Y'…

"H-hey!"

His convulsing arm lost its strength and dropped. In his final moments, Bonggyu was not permitted to leave even a single word to the world.

* * *

"Breaking news! Forty-two healers from the Healer Union have been found guilty in court and have had their hunter licenses permanently revoked! The judge stated, 'The nature of the crimes is extremely malicious and habitual, and they show no signs of remorse,' sentencing five key executives to thirty years in prison… Two members of the Healer Union who had fled overseas have been apprehended in China. With this, all members of the organization will now stand trial."

Riding in a car driven by Seojin and Yusin listened to the radio broadcast with a faint smile. After Oh Bonggyu's capture, the prosecution had immediately raided the Healer Union building, uncovering a flood of evidence of corruption and inhumane acts. The Healer Union was beyond recovery, destined to disappear into history.

And the void it left behind would be filled by Alchemia.

The incident had greatly improved Alchemia's public image. Riding that momentum, they had successfully opened a second branch in Busan. The number of potion golems produced by Eunsol was also increasing, laying the foundation for mass production.

"That was a bit unexpected, I must say," Seojin remarked.

"Hm? What was?" Yusin asked, opening the Magic Tower's domain window, visible only to him.

<Magic Tower of Erendel>

Lord: Kim Yusin

Development: Low-Mid

Total Personnel: 5

Mana Held: 9,985,662

Seojin turned into an alley as he continued. "I'm talking about Chairman Oh Bonggyu. For someone with your personality, Tower Master, to capture such a villain and hand him over to the police without killing or taking revenge on him… I found it surprising."

Just then, the numbers in the domain window changed.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Yusin said.

Total Personnel: 4.

Confirming the decrease, Yusin smiled coldly. "…What's the point of taking revenge on someone who's already dead?"

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