The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years

Translator: Alpha0210

At that moment, there was a knock on the door.

“…….”

Tucker glanced at Residue, letting out a deep sigh as he murmured softly.

“Come in.”

He regained his composure in an instant. Even though his arm had been crushed just moments before, there was barely any tremor in his voice. His ability to maintain his composure was quite impressive. At the same time, it became somewhat easier to understand his behavioral principles.

He had lost an arm without even putting up proper resistance. For the leader of a group, this was an unforgivable mistake and a disgrace. Tucker wouldn’t want his subordinates outside the room to discover this.

This judgment on Tucker’s part accurately pinpointed the core of the environment he had created.

A group collapses when its leader’s dignity crumbles.

This is even more true for a man like him who actively relies on a reign of terror.

Click.

The door opened, and two soldiers, along with a young girl, entered the room.

Tucker's subordinates, and Luca.

“Hyung?”

Luca flinched upon noticing Residue in the room. Residue briefly scanned Luca’s body, assessing her condition.

Though Luca looked slightly thinner, she wasn’t much different from when they had last parted ways. There were no visible signs of abuse or violence. It seemed that Tucker’s earlier claim of treating her respectfully wasn’t a lie.

"Ma-Mayor sir...?"

“Your arm…….”

The soldiers’ gazes finally landed on Tucker’s crushed arm.

Tucker’s complexion was pale, and he was sweating profusely, but that was all. He even managed to calm his subordinates with a soft smile.

“It’s nothing. When negotiations don’t go smoothly, voices tend to get raised, and sometimes they even escalate into scuffles.”

A scuffle.

He was putting on quite the bravado for someone who had lost an arm in a one-sided exchange. Of course, Residue didn’t bother to correct that statement. Not because he wanted to preserve Tucker’s dignity, but simply because he had no interest in such things.

“Let’s go.”

Residue addressed Luca briefly.

Luca hesitated for a moment before silently approaching him. He felt the weight of her grip on the edge of his robe. He considered shaking off that hand but decided against it.

As they were about to leave the room, a voice called out from behind.

“Wait, how will I contact you?”

“I’ll come when the time is right.”

“Irresponsible…….”

“One piece of advice: don’t try to monitor me. Unless you’re confident I won’t notice.”

“…….”

Leaving the speechless Tucker behind, Residue exited the room. Just before turning his gaze away, he saw Tucker’s face distort. It felt like he had finally glimpsed the man’s true nature in the end.

How many steps had they taken?

Bang… Bang….

The sound of two gunshots echoed from behind them.

How thorough. Residue smirked coldly.

The two of them remained silent until they had completely left the UMC. Residue looked up at the sky. It seemed as though the rain had weakened a little. At least there was no longer any sign of thunder or lightning, which allowed him to quietly relax.

“You were able to leave the room?”

“What?”

“I thought maybe hyung had been tied to that room.”

“Tied, huh? What do you take me for?”

“A ghost……”

It was an amusing interpretation, though it didn’t seem like she was merely stating facts.

Perhaps Luca had considered him to be not just a ghost, but some kind of malevolent spirit.

“Have you ever heard of a ghost that eats food?”

“Well, that’s true… but. Hmm. Even so, there are just too many mysterious things about you.”

Even just now. As Luca quietly added this, Residue stopped in his tracks.

“Yeah. You’re sharp enough to notice that much, kid.”

Turning around, Residue saw Luca fidgeting under the brim of her hat. She seemed a bit surprised by Residue's sudden change in attitude.

“Then why did you accept me?”

"That's... when it comes to people helping people..."

“No reason is needed. First of all, let me make it clear that such hypocritical attitudes are of no use in the conversations we’re about to have.”

“…….”

“You’re someone who can take care of yourself just fine. In this filth-covered city, being able to earn a meal every day means you’re a fairly capable individual.”

Luca didn’t respond.

Residue turned his body and began walking again.

Splash. After a brief pause, he could sense Luca following a step behind him.

“What do you think is the most important thing to survive in a place like this trash heap?”

“…Strength.”

“Not a wrong answer.”

“So, it’s not the correct answer either?”

Residue turned his gaze toward a towering abandoned building. It looked precarious, to say the least. Against the backdrop of the dreary sky, it seemed as though it could collapse and be swept away by the rainwater at any moment.

“Having mediocre strength that’s not overwhelming only becomes the root of problems. I’m not talking about arrogance. Being strong means there are many things you can do, and in a place like this city, tangled in countless conspiracies, there’s always a shortage of hands willing to do the dirty work.”

You didn’t have to look far to see an example, Tucker was proof of this.

That man had regarded Residue as merely a ‘powerful entity’. He might have thought Residue was stronger than anyone else in this city, but even so, Tucker had been confident he could control him.

Had Residue’s strength fallen within Tucker’s expectations, regardless of how much power or intention he had, he would have ended up dancing to Tucker’s tune.

In the end, Tucker’s assumptions were wrong.

Though Residue had indeed grown desperately weaker, he hadn’t fallen to the point where he could be swept up in the schemes of mere mortals. He still possessed enough power to crush this city under his thumb with a single finger.

“Then what is more important than strength?”

“Doubt and vigilance.”

Residue entered the building and headed toward the stairs.

“Doubt in the first meeting. Do not lower your guard even after becoming acquainted. Even when someone shows trust, never let your guard down. And you, as far as I can see, have a sufficient amount of that vigilance.”

“…….”

The very fact that Luca was still alive was proof of this. If she had let her guard down even for a moment or had been less cautious, she wouldn’t have survived.

However, this was the part Residue found contradictory.

“I’ll ask again. Why did you accept me?”

Without any suspicion, why did you let your guard down the moment we first met?

Residue didn’t voice the latter part of his thought, but the meaning was clear enough.

“…….”

Click, click….

Of course, the elevator didn’t work in this place, so they climbed the stairs. Luca’s home was on the 22nd floor.

Luca didn’t say a word.

From the 1st floor to the 22nd, as they climbed hundreds of steps, not a single word was spoken.

Residue was silent as well.

When they finally reached the 22nd floor, they walked down the hallway, opened the door, and Residue quickly dried his rain-soaked robe before placing the backpack he had been carrying on the table.

Clatter-

As the loosely tied knot came undone, a few cans rolled out.

When Luca’s puzzled gaze turned toward the table, Residue flopped down on the bed and spoke.

“It’s a month’s worth of food. I requested enough for two adults, so if you ration it carefully, it should last you three months.”

“What?”

“This isn’t me helping you. I just brought it along on the way. The same goes for saving you.”

“I don’t quite understand what you mean…”

“A week, kid.”

“What?”

Residue responded with his eyes closed.

“Think about what you want in that time.”

“…….”

Once again, Luca fell silent.

Her eyes, filled with unease, looked back and forth between the table and Residue.

“…Why a week?”

Residue’s chilling gaze turned toward the girl. Surprisingly, this time, Luca didn’t avert his eyes.

Truly a resilient creature.

Or… have I grown weaker?

Either way, it wasn’t a bad thing.

Residue acknowledged that, regardless of the secrets Luca was hiding or her current situation, he liked this girl more than he expected.

That's why he could say without hesitation:

"Because in a week, I will die."

*

Tucker had a clear understanding of his strengths and weaknesses.

His strengths were meticulousness, composure, cunning, scheming… Though it felt a bit self-indulgent to say so, he could fill an entire sheet of paper listing them.

But what about his weaknesses?

Humans are a species that struggles to recognize their own flaws. Their conveniently biased minds blur their ability to objectively self-assess.

Even taking that into account, Tucker didn’t believe his weaknesses outnumbered his strengths. However, if he had to choose the absolute worst among them, he could name one.

Tucker never forgets a grudge. He cannot forget.

He had always been this way, again and again, dozens of times over.

The fact that cracks had appeared in his carefully laid plans, that he’d failed to read the actions of someone he thought he could control, and that this failure had cost him the humiliation of losing an arm.

Even one of these things would have been enough to drive him mad. But three of them, all at once?

He had to admit it.

Right now, Tucker was incapable of remaining calm.

And that’s why he had called this man.

“You must understand what it means to summon me.”

A voice, tinged with amusement, rang out.

And at that moment, Tucker felt the fury and excitement that had been violently pounding in his chest just moments ago turn cold as ice.

This monster, just ten seconds ago, had been in a city tens of thousands of kilometers away from Meltown.

“Yes. Of course, I fully understand.”

Thankfully, his voice didn’t tremble.

“But I had no other choice. I had no option but to seek out the strongest individual I know.”

“Is he that strong? That outsider?”

“He is.”

“How strong?”

“He’s skilled enough to deceive my judgment. Even at the very least, I’d place him at the level of an Absolute.”

At that, the man chuckled softly.

“If he’s merely at the level of an Absolute, then I’ll erase this city myself.”

“…….”

The joke was so absurd that Tucker could barely force a smile. As expected, having established a connection with Neil Prand had been a wise decision.

After a brief hesitation, Tucker cautiously spoke.

“He gave me a feeling… similar to you.”

“…….”

Hearing that, the man slightly lifted his head.

“A feeling similar to me?”

“It’s just my intuitive impression, but…”

“And intuition is often the most trustworthy. What’s his name?”

“I didn’t hear it.”

“I see.”

The man let out a soft laugh.

“Congratulations, mortal. You’ve succeeded in piquing my interest.”

“Does that mean…”

“I’ll help you. This sounds like it could be an entertaining diversion.”

“Th-thank you, Lightning Lord.”

“Hmph. That title… I’ve never quite gotten used to hearing it.”

The truth was, Tucker didn’t know this man’s name.

Therefore, he had no choice but to make excuses.

“The Twelve Void Lords, Absolutes who rule over the Void World. I swear, they are the most horrifying despair I’ve ever witnessed in my life. And the power you wield is in no way inferior to theirs. That’s why the title ‘Lord of Lightning’…”

"I know the origin well enough. I just don't like it."

“Then… what should I call you?”

At that moment, the man stood up and began to walk forward.

Finally, the dim light began to illuminate the figure that had been hidden in the darkness.

“Zeus, Jove, Jupiter, Iuppiter… I have many names.”

The man pulled down his jet-black sunglasses and smiled.

“But for now, you can call me Retip.”