MTLNOVEL Chapter 83 Echoes of Conspiracy
Five men sat around a circular table, the tension in the room as thick as iron chains. Their faces were etched with worry, and their hushed conversation hinted at the dangers looming over them.
"There's no way we're not getting cut loose," one of them muttered, breaking the silence.
"We can't let that happen," another replied, his voice strained.
"Like it's up to us," a third man retorted bitterly. "If the higher-ups decide to cut ties, we're screwed. No warnings, no second chances."
"Which is exactly why we need contingency plans," the second man insisted.
The first man sighed heavily. "The atmosphere's been tense ever since those raids. The ambush… all those guys got wiped out."
"They think the Americans are behind it, right?"
"More like suspicion than confirmation," came the response from another man.
A fourth man leaned in. "Still, there's definitely a group operating within the country. They've got people working round the clock to track them down."
"And? Any leads?"
"Nothing solid. They're investigating known ability users, but none of the usual suspects fit the profile," he replied with a shake of his head.
"Not surprising. There are plenty of hidden ability users, and some go to great lengths to keep their powers under wraps," someone added.
"I've got a bad feeling about this. If we stir things up too much, the real perpetrators might just vanish without a trace."
"Yeah... Looks like things are going to get noisy," the man grumbled. "In an ideal world, they'd attack us again, and we could wipe them out in one go. But that's wishful thinking."
"Speaking of news," another man said, suddenly changing the subject. "What's this about potion development in the U.S.? I saw something about it on WizardNet. Is it true?"
At that, the man in the white coat chuckled softly. "You think they've actually pulled it off? Not likely.
They can't even get the right ingredients. Most of what's needed only exists in the hidden world."
"They could just import the materials," someone suggested.
"You think it's that simple? The hidden world's market is tightly controlled. Whatever resources come out of there get monopolized by their pharmaceutical giants.
No way they'd let those materials flow freely back here."
"We could have our ability users gather them."
"They're already doing that.
But even with those resources, the supply is barely enough for research. If they want full-scale production, they'll need substitutes from this side of the world."
"It's a logistical nightmare," another man groaned.
"Exactly. That's why progress has been so slow," the man in the white coat explained.
"It's been years since access to the hidden world opened.
And we still can't produce potions?"
Potions were one of the hidden world's greatest wonders.
They could heal wounds rapidly, restore stamina, and even grant temporary boosts in power. Ability users would go to great lengths to obtain them—through missions, deals, or outright purchases.
But potions were scarce, tightly controlled by hidden-world organizations and distributed sparingly.
Large-scale purchases were nearly impossible, and attempts to circumvent regulations were met with harsh penalties.
"If it's so difficult, how are they spreading rumors that the potion research is complete?"
"Some say it's already finished but deliberately being kept secret," another man offered.
"Why would they do that?"
"Who knows? Maybe they want to hoard it for themselves or use it to control something."
A heavy silence fell over the group as each man mulled over the implications. It was the man in the white coat who finally broke the quiet.
"Whatever the truth, the incident here has stalled plans to unify Korea's ability users under one umbrella. The higher-ups won't proceed until they've identified the culprits."
"How long can we maintain this trap, though? If the higher-ups pull their support, we're screwed," another muttered darkly.
"Then we make sure they don't," the man in the white coat declared.
All five men nodded in grim agreement. Failure was not an option. If reinforcements didn't continue to arrive, they were all but certain they wouldn't survive another major assault.
"Maybe we need to push harder," one man suggested.
"Push harder how?"
The man in the white coat glanced toward the portal device. "By forcing our hand. We need to drive the research forward and increase our ability users' capabilities. We can't afford to wait."
"But the tests haven't been fully verified. The risks—"
"We don't have time for perfect tests. No one's died from it yet, right? If we don't move now, we'll lose any leverage we have."
Reluctantly, the others nodded. They understood the necessity but couldn't shake their unease.
The conversation devolved into repeated arguments and trivial banter. Gin, hidden in the shadows, decided he had heard enough. Moving quietly, he withdrew from the warehouse.
He scaled the interior walls and affixed a specially-prepared magical device to the ceiling—a hybrid of domain-magic and tracking spells enhanced by distortion.
Invisible and undetectable, it would monitor and transmit everything that occurred in this location to Gin's research lab.
Having secured the surveillance, Gin slipped out of the warehouse and returned to the streets, maintaining his distortion as he moved swiftly toward the nearest bustling district.
Back at home, Gin collapsed onto his bed.
Though not physically exhausted, the constant movement and mental strain of the day left him craving rest. He had visited multiple sites, including Team Young's portal.
The members of the team were worn down—psychologically drained from their prolonged confinement.
The pressure was mounting, and signs indicated that other corporate-sponsored ability teams were also starting to mobilize.
If those factions were stirring, the adversaries they had faced would likely return as well.
"Korean ability unification… they really think they can pull that off?" Gin muttered to himself.
It seemed impossible to him. The cost of such an endeavor would be enormous, both in lives and resources. Even if they succeeded, managing the aftermath would be a herculean task.
His mind drifted to the portal surveillance device he had installed.
Without a deep understanding of spatial magic, creating a system that connected two realms in real-time would have been nearly impossible.
Yet now, the information was flowing seamlessly to his lab's computer, ready for his review.
As he lay in bed, he let his consciousness drift, passively monitoring the data stream. Most of the information was mundane, but one critical detail stood out: a name.
Calchester.
It was the name of a city accessible through the portal. Gin didn't know its location or proximity to other key areas like West Ham , but it was a lead.
"I'll find out more when I return to the hidden world," he thought.
Perhaps Lumar would offer opportunities to connect with other Earth-born ability users. It might even become the perfect staging ground for his next move.