Chapter 54: The Puppeteer (1)
"This is X-District, Black Magician."
A beggar said as he guided Oliver.
Oliver looked around. The area was similar to W-District at first glance but felt far more dangerous.
"Here?"
"Yes, this is X... Excuse me, if it's alright, may I...?"
"Oh, yes. You may return now."
"Th-thank you. I hope for your safety, Black Magician."
The trembling beggar bowed deeply—almost excessively—and hurried back the way he came.
Initially, Kent had offered to accompany him, but due to some cleanup issues, he had only arranged for a guide. Oliver didn’t mind.
In fact, to be honest, he preferred being alone.
This was the first time he would meet another Black Magician after leaving Wineham.
If possible, he wanted to meet them alone.
If what he had seen through the Watcher’s Eye (Eyeball Necklace) was accurate, then the Black Magician backing the Mole faction should be here.
Though it was hard to explain in words, Oliver could sense it.
He could feel the presence of someone watching him through the Eye.
"The problem is figuring out exactly where..."
He had a rough idea of the location but didn’t know the precise spot.
That wasn’t much of a concern, though.
Oliver focused on his vision.
Before long, he began to feel the emotions surrounding him from all directions.
Among them, there was someone who had come with a specific purpose—to find Oliver.
"Do you have business with me?"
A figure emerged from between the dim streetlights.
"You noticed quicker than I expected."
The person who stepped out from the darkness was a woman, dressed in an extravagantly flamboyant style.
"Huh..."
To put it simply, she looked like a doll.
She wore high-heeled leather shoes, a voluminous skirt adorned with lace, and a corset that left her chest half-exposed and waist tightly cinched.
A ribbon was tied around her neck, and a fancy feathered hat sat atop her head.
Her skin was unnaturally white, as if powdered, and her lips were a fiery red.
It was a type Oliver had never seen before.
The woman spoke.
"Are you the Black Magician the beggars brought?"
"Oh... yes. My name is Oliver."
"Oliver... My great master, the Puppeteer Glyp, has seen you fight. He found you quite interesting and has requested to meet with you. Consider yourself honored."
Her arrogant attitude resembled that of a stage actor, but Oliver didn’t care. He also wanted to meet Glyp.
When Oliver nodded, she turned and began leading the way back, her heels clicking on the ground.
The only sound that echoed through the silence was the sharp clack of her shoes, and Oliver quietly observed his surroundings.
X-District in Landa.
It was the place where his master, Joseph, had once lived. This was his third visit.
According to Kent, unlike the beggars’ dens in V and W-Districts, X-District was home to criminals and fugitives.
To be precise, it was more of a boundary area between this and Y and Z-Districts, where real monsters lived.
In any case, X-District was certainly more dangerous than W-District.
And as if to prove that, Oliver could sense the presence of beings surrounding them.
Suddenly, the woman stopped.
"Oh, by the way, Oliver. My great master has asked that I test you once more. He does not entertain those of inferior worth."
"Oh... So?"
"First, prove your value."
The woman snapped her fingers dramatically, like an actress, and at her signal, zombies leapt out from the nearby alleys.
"Grraaaagh!"
"Raaah!"
"Rarrk!"
Each zombie was armed with blades and spikes.
Oliver focused his vision to count the number of zombies.
About fifty.
It reminded him of his fight with Joseph. Just like then, Oliver used Bind Shadow to restrain the zombies, cutting their bodies apart like slices of cheese.
Then, it happened.
[Hate Bullet]
[Hate Bullet]
The bullets of hatred collided in midair and disappeared.
The woman, holding a test tube, covered her mouth with her hand and laughed.
"Impressive. You have the basics down. Even though your specialty is manipulation, you can use fundamental firearm-type black magic as well."
"...?"
Oliver tilted his head in confusion. His specialty was manipulation-type black magic?
"I saw it through Mole’s necklace. Your specialty is in manipulation. You've probably focused solely on shadow manipulation. To reach that level of proficiency... Who is your teacher?"
"Um... If I answer, will you answer my question as well?"
"Haha... You're amusing. Offering to trade questions? Very well. I'll answer."
"Oh, thank you. His name is Joseph."
"Joseph... Never heard of him. A third-rate."
"Well... I wouldn’t know. Can I ask my question now?"
"Sure. Let me guess... you're wondering why my great master is interested in you?"
"...? No. I wanted to ask why a man like you pretends to be a woman while controlling corpses."
"..."
"Is it easier to control them that way? A kind of trick?"
The woman—or rather, the corpse puppet’s expression twisted in displeasure.
But Oliver, unaware or indifferent, continued to compliment him.
"I personally think it's amazing. I’ve read about controlling corpses as if they were living people, but seeing it firsthand is a first for me... Do you mimic them because it makes them easier to control?"
"Shut up."
Perhaps Oliver had hit a sore spot, because the puppet's emotions roiled with discomfort, shame, and anger.
"I was going to go easy on you since your little tricks are cute, but you dare mock me?"
"Huh? No, I wasn’t mocking you. I truly—"
"Shut up! [Hate Bullet]!"
The woman extracted emotions and fired ten bullets of hatred simultaneously.
Oliver responded by firing his own bullets of hatred, neutralizing her attacks mid-air.
Bang—! Bang—!
Hatred bullets exploded like fireworks in the sky.
His hair flew from the impact, but Oliver paid no mind and focused on the woman in front of him.
It was truly remarkable.
Even though her appearance was modified to resemble a living person, she could still use black magic.
Was the puppeteer using magic through the corpse?
No... that didn’t seem to be the case. The only conclusion left was...
"This corpse... was it made from a Black Magician?"
"...How... do you know?"
"I’ve read about it in a book. It's similar to a lich... but not quite. Corpse Puppet seems more fitting... Bind Shadow."
Shadow tendrils wrapped around the woman’s arm.
Oliver intended to bind her like a naked mole rat and examine her.
"Ha! Fool!"
The moment her arm was grabbed, the woman cut it off.
No, it was more accurate to say the arm detached, like a lizard’s tail.
With a click, the severed arm fell, and a blade, like a mantis’s, shot out from within.
The puppet then rushed forward at a terrifying speed, and Oliver noticed several spider-like legs beneath her voluminous skirt.
This wasn’t just simple corpse manipulation.
"I’ll cut off your limbs and drag you away!"
"Minion."
At that moment, the Minion inside Oliver’s pocket leapt out and launched a Thrust at the approaching puppet.
The shockwave shattered the target and pushed it back.
"This thing—!"
Despite its sturdy exterior, the Corpse Puppet was merely pushed back. But that was enough for Oliver.
[Targeting] X9
[Hate Bullet] X9
Nine hatred bullets struck the puppet—four in its lower body, two in its shoulders, two in its chest, and one in its mouth.
The impacted areas burst apart, scattering treated skin, flesh, gears, tendons, and bones onto the ground.
The damage was extensive, and the puppet was unable to move any further. Oliver calmly examined the Corpse Puppet.
"Hmm... I knew it was modified, but seeing it like this makes it different. Spider legs to increase mobility, blades and spikes in the arms and chest, and even a gun in the mouth... Impressive. You truly deserve the title of Puppeteer."
As Oliver casually deduced the puppet's true identity, its one remaining eye showed signs of agitation.
It puzzled Oliver.
Why go to such lengths to claim this creation was merely a disciple’s work? The craftsmanship was excellent.
Oliver couldn’t understand.
Well, he would find out soon enough.
He stared into the puppet’s eyes, just like with Mole, focusing intently on the Watcher’s Eye.
The Corpse Puppet tried to shut its eyes, but Oliver forced them open, locking gazes.
Before long, he had located the exact place.
It was just at the end of the alley—inside a warehouse building.
Surprisingly close.
After finishing his business, Oliver drained the remaining life force from the Corpse Puppet and stored it in the flask he had prepared earlier.
Then, he headed straight for where Glyp was waiting.
Although it wasn’t far, Glyp seemed rather anxious.
Why? Oliver simply wanted to ask him about his remarkable skills.
The naked mole rats, the Corpse Puppet... Glyp’s ability to handle corpses was impressive.
Combining machinery with corpses in this way...
How did he come up with such an idea? Where did he learn it? If possible, Oliver wanted to learn from him.
Though Glyp didn’t seem keen on the idea.
As Oliver approached the warehouse at the end of the alley, a muscle-bound giant, enhanced with drugs, broke through the wall.
With nails driven into its head and decaying flesh, this too was one of Glyp’s Corpse Puppets.
Unlike the woman from earlier, this one hadn’t undergone preservation, and the reason soon became clear.
[Burning Life]
[Muscle Up]
Another Corpse Puppet appeared and cast black magic on the muscular puppet, empowering it with life force and the strength of rage. The decayed muscles swelled even more.
It seemed that the Puppeteer Glyp could handle multiple Corpse Puppets with great precision.
Even beasts were included.
Grrraaarrr...!
Grrrrarrrr!
Two dead dogs with six legs and steel fangs charged toward Oliver at breakneck speed, attacking from both sides simultaneously.
Their speed was so fast that even Hate Bullets had difficulty hitting them.
On top of that, the Black Magician Corpse Puppet was supporting them with long-range attacks.
Attacks rained down from all directions.
[Black Marble]
Bang! Bang!
Crack! Thud!
Crack! Thud!
The black marble-like barrier encased Oliver just in time to block the assaults.
If he had been even a second slower, his legs would have been torn apart, or he might have been struck by one of the long-range attacks.
But it wasn’t time to relax yet.
"Kyahahahahahaha!"
The muscle-bound Corpse Puppet, seemingly anticipating this, swung a massive hammer at Oliver, whose movement was restricted by the defensive magic.
With its original strength bolstered by black magic, the strike was so powerful that cracks immediately formed on the thin Black Marble.
"Kyahahahahahaha!"
Bang!
Crackle—
Bang!
Crackle—
Bang—!
Shatter—
Watching the barrier start to shatter, Oliver quickly scanned his surroundings.
The muscle-bound Corpse Puppet charging head-on, the Black Magician Corpse Puppet providing support from behind, and the corpse dogs circling around to cut off his escape.
Although not as intricate as the earlier female puppet, each one had been optimized for their respective roles, creating a formidable combination.
The person controlling them was clearly skilled.
That Oliver found himself on the defensive was no coincidence.
"Hmm..."
After organizing his thoughts, Oliver retrieved the life force he had extracted earlier and drank it.
Then, he cast black magic on himself.
[Burning Life]
The black magic burned the life force to enhance his physical abilities across the board.
As long as he burned only the life force he had consumed, there wouldn’t be any major problems.
With that, Oliver deactivated his Black Marble, dodging the muscle-bound Corpse Puppet’s swing just as it missed him by a hair’s breadth.
Normally, avoiding such a powerful attack would be difficult, but with the boost from the black magic, Oliver was able to narrowly evade.
Whoosh—!
The hammer grazed the top of his head, the wind from the swing making his hair flutter.
Ignoring the corpse dogs that were closing in on him, Oliver rushed toward the Black Magician Corpse Puppet at the rear.
[Hate Bullet] X20
At close range, Oliver fired twenty bullets of hatred at the Black Magician Corpse Puppet.
Although the puppet attempted to defend itself, it couldn’t match Oliver’s raw firepower and was thoroughly destroyed.
The Black Magician Corpse Puppet shattered, and Oliver immediately turned around to deal with the corpse dogs charging at him.
[Obedience]
Oliver cast black magic to take control of the reanimated corpses.
His plan was to wrest control of the dogs from Glyp.
Grrrr...!
Screeech...!
To his surprise, the dogs shook their heads in pain as if struggling to resist.
In the books, it was mentioned that overpowering another black magician’s control required significantly greater skill, but...
Oliver could feel the panic in Glyp’s emotions through the muscle-bound Corpse Puppet.
[Wrath Bullet]
[Hate Bullet] X6
Oliver fired a Wrath Bullet at the muscle-bound Corpse Puppet, while sending three Hate Bullets at each of the corpse dogs.
The muscle-bound puppet was blown to pieces, and the corpse dogs, though not completely destroyed, were disabled enough to stop moving.
Yet, Oliver didn’t stop.
He continued forward toward the building where Glyp was hiding.
He opened the door.
"Hello."