#527

Dual Identity (1)

Lennok and Antares were quietly walking through the bustling exhibition hall.  

Dozens of flying machines and levitating devices drifted slowly by.  

“The tactical bombers used by the Kabahim Kingdom. They’re set to be discontinued within the next 10 years.”  

“….”  

“The vertical takeoff and landing craft from the Faraghini Republic. In about five years, a major engine failure will be discovered, leading to an explosion accident.”  

“….”  

“The reverse flow control shuttle, crafted by artisans from Abadrea. By now, the Magic Association’s mages would likely be filing large-scale lawsuits for spell duplication.”  

Antares casually explained about the nearby flying machines, adding a word here and there. But his words weren’t about the history or performance of the machines; they were all about the fate they were to face.  

These were future events that seemed impossible to know at this point—essentially riddles about a future far from certain.  

Lennok silently listened to Antares’s explanations before tilting his head slightly.  

“What are you trying to say?”  

“….”  

“Are you planning to waste time talking about the specs of these planes?”  

Only then did Antares slow his steps and turn to face Lennok.  

“Well, how should I put it… If I had to say…,”  

He smiled softly as he looked at Lennok, then slowly continued.  

“All of the flying machines displayed in this hall are not even as impressive as the anti-gravity technology that was born from your fingertips.”  

“….”  

“The fact that this exhibition is actually happening and bringing new energy to the city is something that was never supposed to happen in the first place,” Antares said.  

“But the truth is, your anti-gravity engine is far superior to any of the flying devices here. That much, anyone could predict, without needing foresight.”  

“You mean that things don’t always unfold exactly as predicted,” Lennok responded.  

“Circumstances vary. In Vulcan, for example, I try to minimize my time there to avoid potential variables…”  

Antares gave a bitter smile, lowering his gaze.  

“For me, the variables of prophecy are also another form of hope. In some way, you yourself are one of those variables.”  

“….”  

“The dark mage of the shadows, the researcher in the light of the academy. A dual life that’s hard to believe, even while seeing it with my own eyes.”  

Antares asked, “At least in terms of human lifestyles as I see them, it’s difficult to achieve even one of those results properly. When did this start?”  

“I’d rather ask you the same thing,” Lennok replied.  

"When did you first know?"

The one who had noticed Lennok’s dual identity without him directly saying a word.  

However, despite this, Lennok did not unleash his magic or feel any malice toward Antares.  

He already knew that it wouldn’t be a major blow for Antares to discover that Van and Evan were the same person.  

After all, Antares had already shared with Lennok his most deadly and deeply hidden secret.  

The foresight ability he obtained as payment for observing his own inevitable end.  

The unbelievable truth that he was traveling across the continent to change the future.  

Far from revealing others’ secrets, this man had a tangled and complex life so difficult that even keeping his own secrets safe was a challenge.  

If both held onto each other's weaknesses, the trust between them would remain unbroken, as long as neither side fell apart.  

Lennok suspected, to some extent, that Antares had anticipated this situation and revealed his own secret in advance.  

Could this too be a fragment of the future leading to its inevitable conclusion?  

"Seeing the future isn’t about blindly picking out possibilities that don’t exist."  

Antares, who had been staring at Lennok, finally turned and leisurely began walking with his hands behind his back.  

"It’s about looking at a single predetermined outcome and then retracing the process leading up to it."  

"……."  

"In that sense, the paper you submitted on mana exchange was incredibly detailed, handling both past and future perspectives with precision."  

Antares spoke slowly, noticing Lennok’s silence.  

"I don’t know many geniuses capable of such a thing."  

Was this something he had suspected since Lennok’s first paper, and now he was finally certain?  

Lennok wasn’t particularly surprised as he listened to Antares.  

Antares’s visit to Jenny’s tavern and his explanation of a possible terrorist attack at the exhibition—such actions could only be made if he was already certain of the connection between Van and Evan.  

What Lennok was curious about was how Antares had deduced this and connected the two identities.  

"Are you really walking backward through the future, knowing your own conclusion is already set?"  

Lennok shook his head and asked, "Do you really believe that something beyond what you wish for exists at the end of it?"  

"Impossible to say."  

Antares admitted honestly.  

"I don’t think this will be possible forever."  

"……."  

"That’s why I want to finish preparations before it’s too late. The war and hunt to come will be so monumental that they’ll change the very concept of what we’ve known so far."  

The paradox of trying to reach an unforeseen conclusion using foresight to glimpse the future.  

What Antares was doing, though different in form and method, was essentially no different from Clown manipulating and deceiving with a Geass.  

What was the reason for carrying such risks and wandering across the continent, building his own plans?

What did the flame that still lingered within Antares until the very end truly mean?  

"Until now, you've deliberately hidden the identity of Evan Vylun. Completely different mana patterns, residences, alibis, personal details, even variations in body scent and habits... Your dual identity was at a level where it was practically impossible to trace with just physical evidence."  

"……"  

"But now that you’ve made such achievements public, there will be a sharp increase in those who are curious about your true identity."  

Antares continued speaking as Lennok remained silent.  

"They’ll wonder where such talent came from, what kind of education you received, what knowledge you’ve learned, what thoughts you have, and what future you envision. And…."  

Both of their steps came to a halt at the same time.  

"What kind of answer you are seeking."  

It was a piece of the great dream once created by humanity, driven by their longing for what lay beyond the world.  

An unresistible truth, and the distant, vast sea of darkness in front of them—broken fragments of eternity turned to foam.  

Among all the flying machines in the exhibition, the space shuttle stood out with its overwhelming scale, size, and output.  

Antares silently gazed at it, murmuring to himself.  

"They’ll want to understand and comprehend it."  

"……."  

"If you want to hide it until the very end, you’ll need to be far more cautious than you are now. Even if you deceive everyone perfectly, in a world where mysteries breathe and live, any lie can eventually become truth."  

"……I know."  

Lennok quietly replied.  

"Even knowing that, participating in the exhibition was a decision I made."  

As Lennok smiled, looking at the shape of the shuttle that Antares was observing, he added,  

"Without progress or regression. Sometimes, I dream of such times lasting forever… but nothing can remain still forever."  

"……."  

"It’s time for change. The second paper is the first step toward that."  

The anti-gravity technology he had implemented by mimicking the updrafts of the Autonomous Region.  

It wasn’t merely the product of the time he spent in the Philenom Autonomous Region.  

Countless hours of magical theory discussions with Aris at the Rebatenon University.  

The ideals of superhumans he had faced as Van—powerful, formidable, and great.  

The intent of the warlord to hunt down foreign transmissions, confirmed at the final moment at the Pantheon's well.  

All of those wills and memories, stretching out toward the outer sea, came together as one step closer to the answer Lennok sought.  

"Opening a path in the sky and pioneering new transportation is only the beginning."  

Beyond immeasurable time, through unmeasurable space, and swimming through the incomprehensible universe—the end of the outer sea.  

After passing through the abandoned dream’s product, the world will become just a little closer to them.  

"If opening the path was Evan’s role, then the next step will be taken by someone else."  

Lennok spoke without hesitation, "How long it will take for the changes brought by anti-gravity technology to arrive is uncertain… but surely, someone will set out to find another answer through it."  

Even if, in the end, Lennok himself isn’t the one who provides the answer.

If Lennok could create another path before the world’s end fully arrives with the new step he proposed.  

"Understood."  

Antares smiled.  

"But that change, it won’t take as long as you think."  

"……What?"  

"If you keep watching the things you can see, sometimes you’ll end up seeing things that you shouldn’t be able to see."  

A seer doesn’t passively receive fleeting inspiration and peek into the future.  

They possess outstanding intuition, judgment, intellect, and inspiration, and they can distinguish the truth of the inspiration that comes to them.  

Without the ability to discern whether it’s true foresight, one will inevitably go mad in an unmeasurable illusion.  

Aside from having glimpsed fragments of omniscient foresight, Antares himself is a sage capable of drawing a specific future based on the past and present.  

"The shock that will come with the commercialization of anti-gravity technology… You won’t be able to avoid the repercussions and the cleanup process."  

Antares turned toward Lennok, noticing the slight stiffness in his face.  

"I just became certain. Your identity must not be exposed at this point, and your abilities and intellect will become an essential possibility for the coming conclusion."  

"……."  

"I’ll help you achieve what you desire. That will be the only way to leave a few remaining variables in the changes that are about to come."  

"Help me?"  

Lennok let out a faint laugh.  

"Now, what help could you offer in hiding my identity?"  

"In a future that’s constantly shaking and deteriorating, there are still a few constants that remain fixed, no matter what."  

"……."  

Antares’s gaze no longer rested on the flying machines inside the exhibition hall.  

As if he no longer saw any value in them.  

His eyes were now fixed intently on Lennok’s.  

"The giants of the light will begin to move."  

  *  

Boom!!!  

The sound of a rough engine roared through the dark asphalt.  

A black flash, barely visible to the eye, scattered fiery sparks across the road before disappearing.  

Screech!!  

Every time the throttle was pulled, the air around Lennok pressed heavily on his shoulders, but the body of the vehicle, following the autopilot algorithm, shrugged off that pressure and protected its user.  

As he adjusted his coat’s collar, Lennok brought his hand to the earphones he had plugged into his ears.  

"Jenny, what’s the situation on your end?"  

- The negotiation fell through. The deal is canceled. The plan has changed to transferring the goods.  

"Got it."  

- Can you manage it?  

"It’ll take about 10 minutes."  

- What, are you moving while riding a bike right now? 

Vroommm…!! If you ride that thing in your condition…!!  

Thunk!  

Lennok ignored Jenny’s words and immediately accelerated the bike’s speed.  

Vrooooom!!  

But following Lennok’s every move, dozens of armored vehicles appeared on either side, as if they had made a pact.  

Armor-plated, assembled like tanks to withstand any shock or explosion. Through the tinted windows, nothing could be seen inside.  

Instead, mechanical gatling guns protruding from both sides of the armored vehicles fired in unison, spewing flames.  

Rat-tat-tat-tat!!  

As Lennok’s bike sped along, hundreds of bullet marks appeared in its wake, erupting in hot, fiery heat.  

At the same time, the vehicles, charging toward him like they were about to ram the bike, moved recklessly, as if they didn’t care about the bullets flying around from their own gunfire.  

Desperate to destroy the bike and cripple its mobility, no matter what it took.  

The frantic and urgent movements made Lennok furrow his brows slightly.  

"Have I been slacking off for too long?"  

It had been a while since he’d taken on a job from Jenny, and now these idiots were messing around.  

Trying to apply pressure using vehicles against Lennok in this city’s underworld was practically suicide.  

The enemy, unaware of this, didn’t hesitate for a second and kept pushing the armored vehicles forward, trying to crush Lennok.  

Clunk!  

As the bike’s body tilted sharply to one side, a long barrel shot out from Lennok’s coat sleeve.  

A tri-barrel rotating shotgun, powered by Lennok’s magic, charged up in the blink of an eye.  

Kiiiing…!!  

[Magic Rapid Fire Level 4 Overlap]  

[Trajectory Correction]  

[Recoil Nullification]  

[Focused Shot]  

[Rotating Buckshot]  

In the instant the gun barrels spun, three magical forces combined, mixing the principles of rotation and rebound, bursting forth in a split-second.  

Vwooooom!!  

The first armored vehicle that charged toward Lennok had a hole blown clean through its side, vanishing as if it had been pierced.  

With the shotgun's recoil, the bike's body shot upwards diagonally, effortlessly leaping over the assault of the other armored vehicles.  

Under the spinning wheels of the bike, fragments of the Resonance Shell rained down, continuously detonating.  

Clunk clunk clunk!!  

As if magnetized, the fragments attached themselves to the underside of the armored vehicles, blinking endlessly, flashing from beneath them.  

A swirling blue magical aura rose up from the road, and several brilliant pillars of light erupted one after another.  

Boommmm!!  

Using the explosion’s recoil as a boost, the monster bike shot up, as if climbing a set of stairs, higher and higher.  

The thick wheels of the bike slammed back down onto the road, sending up countless sparks as the shockwave reverberated.  

Amidst the dazzling heat and crackling sparks, Lennok furrowed his brow and asked,  

"Got rid of the tail. Where’s the item?"

- Passed the intersection at Block 45. It looks like they’ve slowed down!  

Jenny shouted, her voice slightly breathless.  

- I’ll notify the client with the mission instructions. [Evan Vylun Rescue Operation] Starting now...!!  

"......"  

Lennok couldn't help but let out a dry chuckle every time he heard the mission name.  

But the reason he had joined this mission wasn’t because he had a soft spot for jobs, especially not for a rescue operation. It was the fact that this particular mission had been requested directly by a diamond-tier client, a rare and significant request.  

"Right."  

Lennok smirked and twisted the throttle.  

"Let’s go check out this ‘Evan’ guy’s face, then."  

And so, the operation began—though it was unclear who was really rescuing whom.