BXBX NOVEL Chapter 76: The Magic Revolution (2)
“Would you consent to the broadcast of the video? I’d happily edit the footage if you’d rather not be seen. You saved my life…I wouldn’t want you to be in trouble.”
All among the later generations saw Kang Min-hyuk as a benefactor. He was very active in battle, but people were most impressed by him healing the wounded despite his exhaustion. At the time, Kang Min-hyuk’s condition was terrible. His vitality seemed to collapse at once, but he said that he couldn’t rest until the injured were healed. The cameraman was among the wounded.
He couldn’t shoot the battle against the Transcendental Death Knight because he received an injury along the way. He was concerned for Kang Min-hyuk. He had used so much unknown, advanced magic – ungraded spells, medical magic, and the transcendence imprint (the latter wasn’t filmed, fortunately) – which would draw a lot of attention to him. People would seek elucidation of his knowledge, hungry to share in his evolution. This could put him at risk.
“You can broadcast it. That’s how it happened, and that’s how it should be presented.”
“Thank you.”
Min-hyuk knew from the beginning that his performance would shock people. He joined the Subjugation of Dark City, fully aware that he would have to try his best, prepared to unleash his fullest potential, which would inevitably shock the world. It was a reaction that he wanted. The attention would show people that Kang Min-hyuk could be a Guardian Gate protagonist in his own right. People still saw him as the successor to Suhomun, and it built a resistance toward him within the magical community. He had to change their perception so that people saw him as a wizard, not as the successor to Suhomun.
The event became more revolutionary than he’d expected…he didn’t think he’d have to unveil medical magic, but when it happened, it didn’t seem like such a big deal.
“My purpose is to gain power, develop magic, and completely abolish the monsters that haunt our world.”
Even if he created a reputation through the Subjugation, he would have to be recognized as the highest wizard to ascend to the position of Tower Master. He would become the world’s first seventh circle wizard alongside Lee Hak-beom, Sang-hoon, and Yoo Jae-myeong. That was his vision. Only through those means could the existing system be destroyed, leaving Kang Min-hyuk standing tall.
The opportunity that would arise through the broadcast would be enough to lay the foundations for his plan. He proved his worth to people, benefiting those in the magic academia who yearned for his allegiance. Each move he made was slow and deliberate. Later, when Kang Min-hyuk expressed his aspirations, there would be no power to counter him.
The revelation of his abilities would only have negative consequences if he didn’t do it properly. He didn’t intend to allow that to happen.
* * *
Kang Min-hyuk stood in front of the camera, speaking live to the general public, “When I first took the magical path, I didn’t know the possibilities it would present. Following the rejection of my successorship, magic was a refuge.”
He spoke the depth of his truth honestly. Only by revealing his vulnerability could the world recognize that he had started from nothing. His own fairy-tale of rising from the bottom would give hope to other wizards.
“The magic I’ve experienced firsthand has endless possibilities. I studied magic every day and developed new skills such as double casting, changing the form of magic, and mana fairy tales. People called me a genius. Yes, I admit it. I am a genius. The knowledge that 100 years of magic history is yet to develop is alive and breathing in my mind.”
The word genius replaced all rumination. Such a term left no room for questioning; the genius could answer simply “I just did it” without a need to clarify how.
“When the video of the Latecomers was released, people asked me how my magic could affect Class A monsters, how I could heal the wounded with magic. Some even offered a deal. They saw how great the value of magic could be and how it will change wizards’ stereotypes. I didn’t respond to their deals at all. They offered me huge sums because they were worried that I’d hide my knowledge, keeping it only for myself, but those concerns are groundless.”
There was no deal. Many calls were made with such intentions, but Kang Min-hyuk did not answer a single one.
The Kang Min-hyuk who addressed the audience was not the same Kang Min-hyuk who had left Suhomun.
“I will reveal the magic you saw in the video to everyone. From Circle 1 to Circle 5, I found a new magic system that is stronger and more powerful than the one we’ve been using. I also made developments in the field of medical magic – an advancement most assumed to be impossible. I will inform you of them at no cost.”
“Ugh.”
“Is he going to reveal it all?”
The cameramen, reporters, sound technicians, and other staff clamored around and listened as they looked at each other, shocked behind the camera. Kang Min-hyuk’s magical knowledge boasted astronomical value, and he was going to reveal it all for free?! It was a move that ordinary people could not understand. With the instantaneously soaring ratings, they were convinced that the broadcast was a hit.
“In this way, people lose their essence.”
The impact of the revelation would be significant. The Transcendence Imprint was a form of magic that couldn’t be given to everybody…that would remain Kang Min-hyuk’s secret weapon. He focused on the proposal of his new system of magic from Circle one to five. That would be enough to occupy the hungry minds and keep their questions from catching up to his coveted knowledge. The system he would depict was known as intermediate magic in Klinssman’s world. That alone would open up a world of possibility for people in a society used to low-level magic.
Kang Min-hyuk’s announcement riveted the world. They hung on his every word.
“I want the magic academia to develop. I hope that my individual efforts will be universally helpful in the future, and together, our magic will develop further. In light of the new changes in powerful magic and medical magic, we will have to rethink wizards’ utility as something more than a subordinate force. Isn’t it funny? Reinforced warriors and wizards…we are all hunters who protect the world from monsters. With this incident, I hope that both worlds find a way to reconcile with each other. Previously, warriors disapproved of wizards due to their lesser strength, but from now, that notion will not be suitable as an excuse.”
Kang Min-hyuk’s charisma was transmitted through the camera. He seemed much more than a seventeen-year-old student and even more than a fourth-circle wizard. He stood confidently in front of the people as a pioneer.
“That’s all.”
When the broadcast ended, the world was in even more shock than at the later generations’ video release.
* * *
How do we explain the moment a civilization faces a moment of profound change?
A long time ago, people on horseback frowned at the illusion of a lump of scrap metal moving by itself through the sky.
“How is that possible? Be reasonable. That heavy lump of scrap can’t fly; it’s an illusion, not reality.”
The same would have been said for the cell phone, computer, virtual reality, etc. When a new world is born, it seems that the known world must crumble, and people cling stubbornly onto it, refusing to believe anything that alters the perspective they’ve been conditioned to hold…but the world changes all of the time.
Kang Min-hyuk’s presentation was a catalyst for rapid change. It shocked people. The knowledge of a new system so much more potent than the existing one, coupled with medical magic, opened up an entirely new world. Modern medicine was still responsible for healing the injuries that occurred during battle. A simple first aid potion made from Trolls’ blood was a simple solution for minor injuries, but you had to be taken to the hospital for treatment in the end. However, that way was set to change. With a wizard skilled in medical magic, the fortified warriors could relieve the burden of injury during battle.
Kim Seong-ho and his party’s performance in the video was later re-examined.
Even as reinforced warriors, they focused on protecting the wizard with their shields. Thanks to that, Kang Min-hyuk focused solely on magic, and it affected the whole battle. Thanks to Kang Min-hyuk’s announcement, the use of magic had diversified. The power of magic had also increased, but as Kang Min-hyuk showed in battle, he could also take on a tuner’s role, and if necessary, he could become a doctor. The development presented a new direction, not just for magic but for the world.
A new role – the Defender – was born. Some people fascinated by the video took up shields, and wizards who learned medical magic began to emerge. The second-circle Heal became popularised, while the fourth-circle version required more expertise. Various abilities were mounted on wizards. A few days after the Subjugation of the S-class Dungeon Dark City was over, the spotlight that the guardian gate wanted did not illuminate them. Kang Min-hyuk took everything alone. In the rapidly changing world following the announcement, a scholar who appeared on TV said this.
“Every time an Industrial Revolution took place, the world changed dramatically. When the fortified civilization began, there were more changes than ever before. Fortified warriors were born, and they became the core of this world. Now, the world has entered another period of change. It doesn’t mean that the reinforced warrior is exempt. However, we must learn to coexist with something new. Kang Min-hyuk has made a magical revolution.”
It was the first time the word Revolution had appeared during Kang Min-hyuk’s journey, which would shock the world countless times in the future. Then, the eyes of the people turned to Suho Gate. Ironically, the beginning of the magical revolution was born from the guardian gate, the home of a fortified civilization.
How would they react?
That was the concern of the people.