Genius Warlock

Prev I TOC I Next

“I asked what you are doing now.”

Human-meat Chef reiterated the question to the numerous disciples and grand-disciples gathered around him.

They held kitchen knives in their hands, their eyes reflecting dissatisfaction and anger.

The atmosphere was undeniably tense.

However, undaunted, Human-meat Chef continued to consume the roti de quisse before them—a substantial piece of meat.

It seemed like an excessive portion for a single person to consume.

Yet, Human-meat Chef expertly sliced and savored the well-cooked, thick meat using a fork and knife.

Clatter. Clatter.

The clinking of utensils was the sole sound within the restaurant, now completely cut off from the outside world with the sign on the door reading <Close> and the curtains drawn.

Swoosh.

After finishing the sizable piece of meat, Human-meat Chef cleansed their palate with a crimson wine, a blend of human blood and wine that had aged together.

“How is the taste of the wine, Master?”

“Excellent. A pure maiden, aged 30 years?”

“Yes, it’s something I took great care to procure from the establishment I manage.”

The man standing prominently among those surrounding Human-meat Chef replied.

His name was Romang, a direct disciple of Human-meat Chef, possessing broad shoulders and robust stature like his master, impeccably dressed.

“Well managed.”

“After you entrusted it to me, I devoted myself to its upkeep. It was an important business location, both financially and politically.”

Human-meat Chef did not dispute his words.

The bloody wine served as one of the primary sources of income for Human-meat Chef’s organization, a substantial bribe for the elites of Galos and neighboring nations.

It was a miraculous wine that couldn’t be acquired with mere money, renowned for its ability to enhance health, Life-force, and beauty.

This was also the reason why Human-meat Chef could openly operate his business in Galos without interference.

“But no longer. I’ve lost that precious business to the barbarians across the sea… An establishment I’ve managed for 50 years.”

Romang’s voice seemed icy, but beneath it lay a deep attachment to his business and frustration at its loss.

Understandably so, given the immense value of what seemed like a small business.

Anger was an inevitable response, regardless of its value.

All of Human-meat Chef’s disciples hailed from the lower classes, individuals tired of having their possessions taken away.

Therefore, everyone present could empathize with that anger, except for Human-meat Chef himself.

“So?”

His indifferent response silenced everyone.

“We could have stopped it. I could have defended the business if I had stepped in myself instead of my disciples. I could have killed those arrogant Tower wizards and turned them into meat. But you did not permit it, Master.”

“Are you dissatisfied?”

Human-meat Chef inquired while pouring the bloody wine.

“Everyone here has lost their managed businesses. To Rokuri University, the police, the military. The reckless actions of your sister-“

-Bang!

The wine bottle and glass in front of Human-meat Chef shattered as if reflecting his emotions, splattering the bloody wine across the table and floor.

“What a waste… Continue your story.”

The atmosphere shifted. The dozens of disciples and grand-disciples of Human-meat Chef tensed up.

Though they had seldom witnessed him engage in conflict over the past century, his reputation was not to be underestimated.

One of the four pillars of the Black Hand.

‘But that’s just a story of the past. Surely exaggerated…’

Summoning courage, Romang inquired.

“I want to know your plan… Why aren’t you responding more actively, even turning the police, military, Rokuri University, and even the Magic Tower into enemies? Soon, the paladins will come too, and the losses will be too great.”

Romang voiced the curiosity that was shared by everyone present.

While they comprehended being embroiled in the turmoil caused by Human-meat Chef’s sister, they struggled to accept his passive stance in the face of mounting losses.

Becoming a warlock who feasted on humans was a means to escape the fear of death and relish the world’s blessings.

Yet, Human-meat Chef’s response was brutally simple.

“Why should I explain to livestock?”

Romang’s eyes widened. He had remained loyal to Human-meat Chef for an entire human lifespan.

“We dedicated ourselves to you, Master.”

“Livestock also dedicate themselves to humans. Cows plow fields, pigs breed, chickens lay eggs, horses carry loads. But do humans thank livestock?”

Everyone in the restaurant instinctively recognized that these words weren’t meant as mockery. In fact, this acknowledgment made them even more cutting.

“No. When they can no longer plow, breed, lay eggs, or carry loads, rather than thanking them, humans kill them for meat. For food on the table, or snacks for dogs.”

“Are we just livestock to you?”

“Of course. You became my disciples, gaining power and immortality, in exchange for becoming my livestock.”

“Yes, we did. That’s right.”

Romang nodded, dispersing the mana he had amassed by consuming numerous wizards and mana users.

The vast mana enveloped the fairly spacious restaurant, simultaneously causing a blackout that went unnoticed by ordinary individuals.

In the blink of an eye, so swift that even those with exceptional reflexes might have missed it, there was a fleeting sensation as if gravity had been negated. It could have been an illusion, but that brief moment felt incredibly real.

“It’s one of the spatial magics, teleportation magic.”

Human-meat Chef promptly recognized the technique employed by Romang.

Then, employing his magic, he drew back the curtains that covered the restaurant windows.

Swish –

Strangely, instead of the cityscape, a view of the forest outside the windows greeted them.

“Outside the Ravilli Forest?”

“Yes.”

“A good method.”

Human-meat Chef acknowledged.

Indeed, it was a well-conceived strategy. Creating a structure identical to the restaurant, enhancing spatial synchronization, and then utilizing it as a catalyst for teleportation magic.

While it may have required significant time and expense to prepare, it provided a reliable means of utilizing complex spatial magic.

“Thanks to this, we can attack without any reservations.”

Human-meat Chef spoke as if discussing someone else’s business.

Almost as if on cue with his words, other disciples who had been waiting nearby surrounded the building.

Approximately a hundred in number. It was a flawless ambush.

Luring Human-meat Chef to the restaurant in Zone 8, where disturbances were unlikely, and then isolating him in a remote location using spatial magic prepared over several months was a remarkable achievement.

It would have been an impossible feat without substantial time, resources, and public discontent against Human-meat Chef.

“I agreed to become livestock to learn the art of black magic from you, Master… But I didn’t expect to be treated exactly like livestock.”

“No livestock wants to be livestock. They are just powerless, that’s why they’re livestock.”

Whether his words stung or not, the composed Romang twitched and signaled. In response to his cue, the traitors encircling Human-meat Chef, fueled by their anger, thrust their knives towards him.

Chalaralaralak!!

Dozens of dark blades hurtled towards Human-meat Chef. In that moment, the emotions within him surged like waves, manifesting as colossal blades sweeping in all directions.

The crescent-shaped blades, resembling sharks slicing through the air, tore through both the traitors inside the building and the restaurant’s structure itself, shredding the floor, ceiling, and walls, and striking those outside.

In a single devastating counterattack, blood sprayed in all directions, and severed limbs rolled across the chaos.

The extent of the carnage was difficult to gauge, as everyone within the range of those dark blades suffered, and many sustained injuries beyond their regenerative capacities, crumbling into nothingness.

Shock and terror gripped everyone. They were aware of the master’s reputation for strength, but they hadn’t anticipated such an astonishing display of power while he remained seated.

However, what was done could not be undone, and there was no turning back.

The former disciples and grand-disciples of Human-meat Chef immediately channeled immense black magic into their bodies and launched an assault.

Some enlarged their skeletons and muscles to colossal proportions, while others, without increasing their size but densifying their mass, turned a dark shade of red and pounced like wild beasts.

Each one presented a formidable adversary in their own right.

Yet, it proved futile.

As Human-meat Chef drew a concealed French knife from his sleeve and swung it, robust muscles, steel-like bones, and armor-like keratinized skin all yielded as if they were mere pudding.

The overwhelming numerical advantage appeared meaningless.

To everyone’s astonishment, Human-meat Chef didn’t even take a single step.

“Krowarararararang!!!”

Something enormous, sinuous like a snake and swift as lightning, wove its way through the hesitant crowd, drawing closer to Human-meat Chef.

It was a bipedal wolf-like creature, a rather crude creation.

“A werewolf?”

Human-meat Chef reacted swiftly and swung his knife.

This rough amalgamation of wolf and human exhibited surprising agility for its size, dodging Chef’s blade and attempting to attack with its black magic-enhanced teeth and claws.

Thud!

Nevertheless, the werewolf’s abdomen was impaled by Chef’s small yet potent knife.

“Gurgh…!”

Awkwardly towering at over three meters in height, the colossal werewolf couldn’t even flinch after being stabbed by the modest blade.

The blade bore a black magic spell, ‘Stiffness,’ which caused the werewolf’s body to stiffen. Human-meat Chef observed the large but unwieldy creature and spoke.

“Isn’t this a real werewolf, not a chimera? I never fed one, how did it consume one?”

In response to Human-meat Chef’s inquiry, the werewolf, known for its resilience and regenerative abilities, replied.

“My brother…! He died crushed under a rock while driving a car━”

━Slash!!

Before the werewolf could finish its statement, Human-meat Chef swiftly raised his paring knife.

The werewolf’s hide, capable of withstanding bullets, was effortlessly cleaved open, spilling forth a torrent of blood and entrails.

Splat.

Blood and entrails pooled on the floor.

As Human-meat Chef contemplated whether to collect them, a colossal shadow loomed overhead, obscuring the light above him.

Gazing upward, Human-meat Chef beheld it.

A giant, at least 20 meters in stature.

It resembled a two-legged mountain, but what was more astonishing was that this form was not merely a product of magic; it was real.

“A real giant has been consumed.”

Human-meat Chef commented, studying the traitor who had transformed into a giant.

His absorption appeared incomplete, and his form was somewhat distorted, particularly in the lower half, which remained underdeveloped.

It was a failed consumption, at best a partial success. However, the undeniable fact remained that he had devoured a giant.

A giant from another world and an extinct werewolf.

The only plausible explanation was the opening of a portal to summon and consume beings from another realm.

“I didn’t teach him that, but he managed to do it anyway.”

[I am… no longer… mere livestock…!!!]

The traitor, who had clumsily absorbed the giant, bellowed, veins bulging on his forehead and neck.

Thanks to the giant’s vocal cords, the scream, distinct from a human’s, resonated throughout the forest. The traitor hoisted the giant’s arm and brought it crashing down with immense force.

The giant’s colossal size, weight, and mass generated an atmospheric disturbance just by moving its arm, crashing down like a natural disaster.

The shockwave that ripped through the air was visible, and upon seeing it, the other traitors, despite their nearly-immortal regenerative abilities, scrambled away.

Intuitively, they understood that such a devastating attack could kill them instantly, regardless of their regeneration.

Amidst the fleeing crowd, only Human-meat Chef remained unflinching.

He shifted the knife from his right hand to his left, clenched his empty hand, and launched an upward punch toward the descending cataclysm.

━━━━━━━━━!!!!!

As fist met fist, an indescribable explosion reverberated, sending shockwaves like tidal waves in all directions, snapping trees and uprooting them.

It was a cataclysmic force akin to a meteor strike.

But even more astonishing was the outcome.

Remarkably, it wasn’t Human-meat Chef’s fist that shattered but the giant-transformed traitor’s.

[Agh… Ahhhhh!!!]

The giant, its fist reduced to fragments, bellowed in agony, shaking the forest, while Human-meat Chef stood triumphantly on the shattered remnants.

As if nothing had occurred.

The only discernible damage Human-meat Chef seemed to have sustained was dirtied clothing and a slightly torn right sleeve due to the shockwave.

“A limited edition summer shirt.”

Human-meat Chef mumbled with regret.

It was an incomprehensible spectacle.

Evidently, he had thrown his punch using only the pure physical strength of his body, devoid of any black magic. How such a result could be possible was beyond comprehension.

The sight of the inexplicable overwhelmed the hundred-plus traitors.

Overwhelmed by the sheer might of Human-meat Chef.

If he were to enhance his body with disease-based black magic, what kind of power could he wield…? They all envisioned it, and that imagination quickly transformed into fear.

“Don’t be afraid…”

The sole traitor who remained unafraid spoke up, and it was Romang.

The direct disciple of Human-meat Chef himself had undergone a transformation.

He had grown threefold in size, red scales sprouted intermittently on his skin, jagged horns protruded from his head, and his arms and legs had morphed into something reminiscent of a massive reptile.

“Did you eat a worm or something?”

Human-meat Chef taunted Romang.

However, Romang paid no heed to the remark and took a deep breath, drawing in a colossal amount of air into his expanded chest. Simultaneously, the red scales glowed menacingly like heated iron, radiating intense heat.

Despite it being summer, smoke began to rise.

As the heat intensified, not only did the ground parch, but the surrounding trees twisted and withered, turning yellow.

“Get away!”

Sensing the ominous aura, other warlocks shouted, but it was too late.

Just as the warning was issued, Romang exhaled his breath, a mixture of flame and tempest.

The massive flame, too immense to be merely described as red, incinerated everything in its path with the force to consume mountains.

Countless trees, rocks, the very ground, lakes, and even his comrades…

Everything turned to ashes in an instant.

Except for Human-meat Chef.

He emerged unscathed from the flames, swiftly passing by the dragon-like Romang.

Snap… Snap… Crack. Crack.

“Delicious.”

(To be Continued)

CH 404-413 (Vs Human-meat Chef Part2) $3CH 414-423 (Vs Human-meat Chef Part3) $3CH 424-433 (Vs Human-meat Chef Part4) $3434~ $1/chapter

OR

$5/month11 chap ahead + 5 chap/week$15/month17 chap ahead + 5 chap/week$30/month23 chap ahead + 5 chap/week$45/month60 chap ahead + 6 chap/week

Prev I TOC I Next

<ul data-sharing-events-added="true">LikeLoading...

Genius 395March 1, 2024In "Warlock"

Genius 407March 18, 2024In "Warlock"

Genius 387February 14, 2024In "Warlock"