Chapter 158

[…]

Shin Jae-heon’s words brought no change to the painting.

But without a flicker in his expression, he spoke.

“Not coming out?”

[…]

The painting remained utterly silent.

Shin Jae-heon stared at it for a moment, confirmed once more that Mrs. Maiden had left, then reached for the edge of the painting.

—Rip.

The sky in the corner of the painting tore just a little.

But the reaction was immediate.

Only then did two faces poke out from the corner of the painting.

Shin Jae-heon wasn’t surprised to see the two dust-covered mages.

He had suspected this painting from before Mrs. Maiden awakened as an L-rank boss.

For a painting of a study hung in Mrs. Maiden’s refined space, it was far too chaotic.

Smashed bookshelves scattered across the floor with books, shattered windows, and more.

At first, he thought it reflected some violent side hidden within Mrs. Maiden.

Sure, everyone carries a bit of darkness.

Shin Jae-heon considered himself open-minded enough to overlook it, but when the painting started moving, he couldn’t ignore his suspicions.

This was no ordinary painting.

The study in the painting shifted into a corridor, shaking as it headed downward, with two mages running frantically in the middle.

And they fled out of the mansion like they were escaping.

But they couldn’t reach the mansion’s garden.

[!]

As if a thick glass wall separated the painting’s world from reality, those zoomed-in faces soon gave up escaping and collapsed.

At first, he lightly dismissed it as the ones fighting Mrs. Maiden having been moved there.

But then, at some point, his gaze “met” theirs.

When he realized those inside could see outside.

When they held hope of breaking out.

And when Shin Jae-heon acknowledged their existence.

[…?]

By then, the mages wore strange expressions.

Shin Jae-heon instinctively felt unease.

If they could see this entire space from there?

Wouldn’t they have witnessed the three fighting Mrs. Maiden, Hunter So Yeri’s intervention, and even them watching with the music box playing?

The moment that thought crossed his mind, sure enough, the system window flashed.

After Hunter Joo Yian’s shout, a ‘Strange Title’ penalty window had been floating around too.

But Hunter Joo Yian apparently hadn’t noticed them, perhaps because she couldn’t perceive the mages.

Shin Jae-heon’s lips twisted.

He had been pondering how to deal with them ever since.

The good news was they were trapped in the painting. From the looks of it, they couldn’t escape without outside help.

It was a golden opportunity.

This was why Shin Jae-heon had taken the risk to send the three hunters out first.

Since their prison was a special space, no penalty crisis had appeared for the three yet.

So he needed to get the painting as far away from them as quickly as possible.

And his plan had worked.

With the three gone, even if things went wrong, the penalty would only affect him.

Of course, he didn’t think things would go wrong.

He narrowed his eyes at the painting.

[C-Can you see us?]

The mages, failing to grasp the situation, started spouting nonsense.

Shin Jae-heon raised an eyebrow slightly.

“Of course. You’ve been on my nerves since earlier.”

As their eyes met, the hazy RP Dungeon Penalty Crisis window sharpened.

Sure enough, the more they suspected us, the more they believed what they’d seen and heard as ‘real,’ the clearer the penalty window became.

“Is that just you two inside? I figured the knight would outlast you. Unexpected.”

Shin Jae-heon tilted his head. The mages bristled.

[That guy…!]

[A powerless swordsman rampaging here is just a nuisance!]

Then they froze.

They had belatedly remembered that the Western Empire’s emperor holding their lives was also a swordsman.

Shin Jae-heon watched their expressions shift rapidly.

Their gazes were fixed on the sky he had torn.

What would the world look like if ripped like paper?

They surely knew the answer to that question.

Shin Jae-heon spoke leisurely.

“I know you’ve seen and heard things you shouldn’t have.”

At those words, the mages’ faces paled.

[W-What?]

Denying it late wouldn’t help; the RP Dungeon Penalty Crisis window was already vivid.

Instead of pressing further, Shin Jae-heon tore the corner of the painting a bit more.

—Rip.

The mages freaked out and fled to the painting’s corner.

[Stop!]

[Don’t tear it!]

They waved their hands desperately.

[Killing us won’t do you any good!]

[We swear we won’t tell a soul!]

Shin Jae-heon ignored them and tore the painting further.

As the rift reached the mansion inside, amazingly, that part of the mansion began to crumble.

“Oh…”

Shin Jae-heon was merely amazed, but the mages’ faces turned ghostly white.

[Please stop!]

[Your Majesty!]

In their panic, they switched to honorifics.

Your Majesty? Me or you guys?

As Shin Jae-heon frowned briefly, they continued.

[If you spare us, we have something to tell you!]

“You’d just be telling me what I already know.”

Shin Jae-heon replied indifferently.

The Eastern Empire’s intelligence had long dismissed the Western Empire’s capabilities.

But the mages waved their hands frantically.

[No! We can assure you it’s not! This is top secret even in the Eastern Empire!]

[Make a contract with me, and I’ll tell you!]

They shouted haphazardly, then glared at each other.

Eastern Empire mages seemed used to fending for themselves.

[Contract with me too!]

The black-haired mage next to the brown-haired one who proposed the contract yelled.

[I said first!]

The brown-haired mage bristled.

Then they started bickering.

They didn’t look long for this world, no matter how you sliced it.

Shin Jae-heon quietly observed as they spilled words amid their rivalry(?).

[We know how the Eastern Empire will move next!]

[What are you trying to say!]

[If you’re not contracting, butt out! It’s about the Eastern Empire’s Gate plan!]

The black-haired one panicked at the brown-haired mage’s words.

[How could you say that?]

[If you’re not in, get lost!]

The brown-haired one seemed extremely urgent.

Shin Jae-heon waited for them to leak enough, then tossed in some bait casually.

“Gate plan?”

As if intrigued.

The two mages brightened and started chiming in.

[Yes! How the Eastern Empire will manage Gates from now on!]

[Right now, the Eastern Empire is gathering monsters from Gates… Mmph!]

[What are you saying!]

[You were about to too!]

Shin Jae-heon watched as they desperately covered each other’s mouths, each trying to prove they had the most valuable info.

Then he prodded lightly.

“Getting boring.”

—Rip.

Bricks from one side of the mansion came tumbling down.

The mages’ faces turned ashen.

[They’re planning to gather monsters from the Gates!]

[The Eastern Empire is at its limit! Over half the Gates have burst, so no one’s coming here!]

[We actually fled here!]

[If we hadn’t come, we’d be diving into Gates nonstop without rest!]

[We wouldn’t have come if we knew there was a Gate here!]

Listening, Shin Jae-heon asked.

“Gathering Gate monsters?”

Just showing interest made them spit saliva as they competed to share more.

He hadn’t even said he’d spare them for info yet, but their fear-paralyzed minds were desperately proving their worth.

Shin Jae-heon knew well how to handle such people.

[That’s… Mmph!]

[Let go!]

He patiently waited through their scuffle.

Now they seemed convinced that the one with the most useful info would survive.

[Mages are researching full force! The Gates!]

“What about the Gates?”

[Gates to gather monsters! Using their homing instinct to draw them in!]

[And those Gates will connect to the Western Empire!]

“Oh?”

Shin Jae-heon raised an eyebrow.

This was genuinely new information.

As he showed more interest, their words sped up.

[Teleportation Gate research is nearly complete too! They might be installing one in the Western Empire by now!]

[Kinna the Transmitter—no, Kinna can’t stabilize the Eastern Empire’s chaos, so they’re turning arrows toward the Western Empire!]

It wasn’t implausible.

Shin Jae-heon stroked his chin.

“So you’ll give me that info in exchange for your lives?”

At that, the mages’ mouths snapped shut.

They had realized too late they’d blabbed too much.

[M-Make the life-sparing contract first, then we’ll tell!]

Souls freely switching between casual and honorifics.

Shin Jae-heon replied simply.

“I swear on the Emperor’s name.”

The mages hesitated briefly.

The Emperor’s name carried weight.

But it didn’t promise survival, did it?

Giving them a moment to eye each other, Shin Jae-heon tossed more bait.

“The one with useful info lives, I said.”

It took them mere seconds to calculate.

[Me! I’ll give it!]

[It’s me!]

Like students raising hands only for extra credit.

Thinking that, Shin Jae-heon said leisurely.

“So I just need proof your words are true?”

Meaning, show evidence. The mages rushed to respond.

[Send someone to the Eastern Imperial Palace basement!]

[Mages are researching there in the basement!]

[They built a facility first to conceal powerful magic power underground! Get near it, and the mana sucks you in!]

Despite panicking and shouting over each other, their stories matched.

That guaranteed some credibility.

“Fine, I’ll verify.”

Shin Jae-heon replied. Joy lit their faces.

[You’ll spare us?]

They asked together. To confirm, Shin Jae-heon asked back.

“You’ve given me all the info?”

They bristled.

[Of course!]

[With our lives on the line, what would we hide!?]

Then they glanced at each other.

Shin Jae-heon could almost read their minds.

They were anxious that if both survived, the other might rat them out for leaking to the enemy.

Sure enough, one spoke up slyly.

[…Sp-Spare me over this guy! I’m quite influential in the Eastern Empire’s mage circle!]

The other gaped in shock, unable to retort, just stammering.

So it was true; pathetic.

Shin Jae-heon watched, then laughed.

“I’ve heard enough, so time to keep my promise.”

On the Emperor’s name, that is.

His lips twisted.

Joy bloomed on their faces.

Glancing at each other briefly, they figured dealing with the rival could wait outside.

“I swore on the Emperor’s name to promise your survival.”

Shin Jae-heon said, noting the RP Dungeon Penalty Crisis still hovered.

The mages nodded vigorously.

[Yes! Our lips are sealed!]

[Glory to the Western Empire!]

What shallow loyalty. Shin Jae-heon chuckled silently at their ugliness.

He waited until they cheered in relief at ‘surviving,’ then hesitated at his lack of reaction.

Then, in a clear voice, he said.

“Ivan Elethia von Carman…, I don’t need a name like that.”

Such a window changes nothing; killing them ends it.

[W-What!]

Watching the panicked mages, Shin Jae-heon ripped the painting clean in half.