Book 14 Chapter 33
The hero's hometown,
From the central part of the Empire (5)
“W-what the… Argh!”
Operation 'Night of the 11th Day' began abruptly.
The sound of something tearing through the wind, and the sound of the wind barrier breaking, rang out in succession, and seven guards from the northern branch of Alisa Merchant Group fell unconscious, embedded in the outer wall or roof.
The heroic woman, whose water-colored hair fluttered as she appeared, seized control of the entire branch without mercy.
“Mixing [King's Flesh] into flour like powder, how could you think of such a cruel plan?”
The size of a merchant guild is directly proportional to the skill and number of its guards.
In other words, all the guards protecting this place were the elite of the elite.
And though they were equipped with the best armament, they couldn't even put up a fight against this woman, who was using only her fists.
“You bastard, die!”
The branch manager aimed for the heroic woman's back, but a fireball flying from somewhere neutralized his attack.
“The Alisa Merchant Group has begun to move.”
The mage who used the fireball approached the heroic woman and spoke. The surviving guards blinked in bewilderment.
The person they had trusted as a colleague until now suddenly changed their attire and expression in an instant.
In other words, the traitor, splendidly clad in a mage's robe, was in fact a spy from the Special Operations Division.
“T-that traitor bastard!”
“Kill him!”
Ten guards rushed forward at once, but they were thrown here and there in the order they rushed, falling unconscious.
The Special Operations Division mage, frantically flipping through a grimoire to cast his next spell, couldn't even manage a hollow laugh, merely blinking his eyes.
Lista asked,
“Is this the end of this branch?”
“Yes. But it has been confirmed that most of the 500 outer city garrison troops have been bribed. It's unlikely that the 100 inner city guards, managed directly by the lord, could be bribed, but battles are currently breaking out all over the city.”
The ominous movements within the Alisa Merchant Group were immediately detected by the joint front of the Special Operations Division and the Golden Children.
It seemed the operation schedule had been moved up after Count Apeltas led his troops to subjugate monsters that had recently infested the nearby areas.
It was confirmed that the merchant group's personnel and resources were suddenly heading en masse towards the lord's mansion, that is, the inner castle.
“Flames are rising everywhere.”
Lista said, looking out the window at the city enveloped in the darkness of night, and the flames greedily licking that darkness.
“There’s no other way to purify the contaminated grain.”
The inquisitors from [Golden Children], who were blocking the retreat routes, appeared and answered.
“[King's Flesh] doesn't disappear with flames, but if it's buried in ashes, it can be clearly identified. More importantly, we've caught Alisa amidst this commotion, so the rest of the enemies will soon be annihilated.”
At the forefront, the woman who had apprehended Alisa, the head of the merchant group, was the same female inquisitor who had contacted them 11 days ago, disguised as an apple seller.
“So? Where is the enemy's main force?”
“According to information sent by Cecil Duren, the swordsmanship instructor, Billien, is suspected, but we don't have enough time to infiltrate deeply…”
“Then isn't Gid in danger right now?”
“You don't need to worry. According to the report just delivered by the Sun Parrot Taro, Lord Lynn has been imprisoned in the inner castle's dungeon on suspicion of assassinating Gid Apeltas.”
Lista flinched in surprise.
“Assassination suspicion?”
“Don't worry. It's just a simple bruise, they say. He's still unconscious, though.”
Not just Lista, but the inquisitors' eyes gleamed.
It was already shared information that Lynn, a Glados (4-star) mage, had infiltrated the lord's mansion as a magic teacher.
However, a magic teacher had the disadvantage of only being able to stay in the inner castle during daytime hours. There was a limit where they would inevitably be absent when needed.
“But to intentionally go into the dungeon…?”
“It’s a place where one can immediately use power when needed…”
“Indeed, a prodigy who became a Glados (4-star) mage at thirteen, what a magnificent operation…!”
Lynn… Lista had to force a pleased smile, feeling as if she had received the compliment herself.
It was then.
Alisa, the head of the merchant group, whose heavy body was bound by chains, let out a sinister giggle…
“Billien? That kind of guy as the main force? This is a gamble against the former Sword Saint, would I, Alisa, bet on such a greenhorn? It won't matter who's left in the inner castle!”
“What kind of great person did you recruit to be blabbering about?”
“Jihit.”
Perhaps because the burn had hideously distorted her facial skin, Alisa's cackling expression looked even more chilling.
No, was it really because of her expression?
Wasn't that name itself the truly chilling factor?
“Jihit?”
“Jihit, you mean *that* Jihit?”
“That man's purpose for coming here…!”
Before an unsettling conclusion could be reached in her mind, Lista was already sprinting at full speed towards the inner castle.
“Gid…!”
* * *
“Young Master.”
Gid's body, covered in cold sweat, was unconscious.
“Young Master.”
Beyond the unconscious, Gid was not his current miserable self, but his younger self, enveloped in radiance.
Radiance… that was the light named Mother.
Gid's mother, Sena Apeltas, was frail and always confined to her sickbed, but she would call her sister or Gid and converse gently with them.
“You must get up.”
His mother died young, and that was all Gid remembered of her.
“Young Master.”
The spring breeze from Eleonore's territory entering through the window, the scenery quietly reverberating, and his mother stroking Gid's head as he lay on her lap…
“!”
Gid opened his eyes to the night breeze that swept coldly over his entire body.
The swordsmanship instructor, Billien, gently lowered him from his arms, and a chill (惡寒) ran through his whole body.
This was the roof above the mansion. Since the inner castle was built on a high ground in <Central North>, the entire city could be seen clearly from the top of the mansion.
“Huh?”
A place his mother loved, a place where his mother had brought Gid in his childhood to look down at the city together.
Mother…
From a young age, she loved this hometown so much. Because his mother loved the city, the city also loved his mother.
“The city is burning.”
“What? What happened…?”
“Do you remember the mage, PM? That mage was actually an advance scout of the Black Church who came to seize this city. His comrades and subordinates are doing this, taking advantage of the Count's absence.”
“PM? No, that can't be.”
“This happened because Young Master's discernment in people is so inept. To quell this situation, Young Master must step forward.”
Billien took a step closer, and Gid felt a very ominous feeling. Something, something eerie. Was this an instinctive repulsion?
“However, Young Master's talent and skill are both the worst. But would you believe me if I said there's a way to become dramatically stronger at once?”
Billien pulled something out from his waist. Something the size of a millet grain was wriggling grotesquely. It was [King's Flesh].
“You just need to eat this, Young Master. It would be easier to think of it as medicine.”
Billien took another step closer.
Gid retreated one step further.
Was this also instinct? His body was moving to use the Beastman Magic he had learned from PM.
“Ugh!”
Just then, he felt a crushing pain in his wrist. Billien, who had closed the distance in an instant, had grabbed Gid's wrist.
“I'm tired of that magic now. And can't you recognize my loyalty? I'm trying to make Young Master stronger.”
Billien twisted Gid's hand behind his back and reached out to put the flesh into Gid's mouth.
“N-no, I don't want to…”
[King's Flesh] contains the thoughts of the king, so even this small amount can cause addiction and turn one into a slave.
“No, don't…!”
After ousting Riland Apeltas, this preliminary work was essential to put this incompetent fellow forward as a puppet.
“Now, there's nothing to be scared of. Slowly open your mouth and swallow it.”
Gid resisted desperately, but as Billien threw Gid down and began to strangle him, the situation worsened.
Billien brought the flesh to the boy's mouth. [King's Flesh] also extended its body like a tentacle, trying to part the boy's lips and enter inside.
At that very moment.
Swish.
A silver flash streaked across the edge of his vision, and with a very distinct slicing sound, Billien's wrist flew into the air.
“Hmm, I expected a scream, but you're better than I thought.”
Billien drew a sword with his remaining hand and aimed it at the opponent, who had appeared out of nowhere.
It was Riland Apeltas.
The killing intent emanating from the former Sword Saint was truly ferocious. He wasn't even aiming his sword at him, but merely observing the snatched piece of flesh.
“It's definitely larger than the flesh those petty criminals had. Indeed, though it's only five times larger, the density of the abyss it emits is enormous.”
“C-Count… You were supposed to be away on campaign outside the city.”
“I pretended to be away. To make sure scoundrels like you would do something.”
Billien cauterized the severed area with magic to stop the fatal bleeding and took a step back.
“Worried about the Young Master? I thought you had no interest.”
“I'm not uninterested. I just don't get close. Because I'm a father who doesn't deserve it.”
While Riland put the flesh into a gourd, Billien swallowed hard.
“If you knew my true identity, you should have acted sooner. Then the Young Master wouldn't have gone through this.”
He was trying to buy time from death by engaging in conversation, but that too seemed to be reaching its limit. Could he stop him?
“If I had moved prematurely, I wouldn't have been able to wipe them all out.”
Even if he couldn't display the strength of his prime, an attack from the former Sword Saint… a person who once reigned at the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
“Don't underestimate me too much.”
Behind Billien's back, *Chiririring*, magical chains crisscrossed, forming loops.
The manifestation of a Mana Chain.
There were two chains; one was complete, and the other was only half. This indicated a 1.5-sealed knight.
“You might think you're a genius, but in the old Demon Front, there were plenty of swordsmen like you.”
He couldn't react at all.
Riland's casually delivered sword strike, that silver flash, rushed towards his eyes, tearing at his skin, severing muscle fibers, and shattering bones—in that very moment.
He would surely have died then. If it weren't for the dark blue blade that suddenly appeared and blocked that silver death.
“Hmph, still as arrogant as ever. Billien, you're in the way, grab that brat and step back.”
Riland's eyes, usually unyielding in their stern expression, momentarily flickered with agitation, then narrowed.
“Jihit.”
“You said you hated everything about me back then. And that I would regret not killing you.”
“Is that why you returned in such a hideous form?”
Jihit looked young.
His youthful appearance, as he was when he was miserably defeated in a sword dance with Riland, remained unchanged. As if he alone had not faced the ravages of time. Of course, this was merely the result created by the abyss of [King's Flesh].
But the venom in Jihit's eyes was thicker and deeper, as if decades of time had condensed within them.
“Hideous is a more fitting word for you, whose face is covered in wrinkles, wouldn't you say?”
“No.”
Behind Riland's back, magical chains glowed brilliantly and crisscrossed.
That radiance was the light of a Mana Chain.
In that dazzlingly powerful feast of light, there were three layers of chains. A 3-sealed knight, those who reach the pinnacle of an era!
“To see a being who once fought against the abyss sell his soul to the abyss out of vengeance—that is what I call hideous.”
The same thing was happening behind Jihit's back.
“What do you know, Riland.”
However, Jihit's chains were dark blue. Not only his soul but also his body, that is, his magic emission organs, had been corrupted by the abyss.
“You, who took everything I wanted in my life.”
And was this also the power of the flesh? Jihit's chains were four layers thick. Though the last one was only half. He had reached the realm of a 3.5-sealed.
“You.”
* * *
With nothing much to do in prison, he was solving various mathematical problems in his head.
“Who’s there… Kuagh!”
A guard was hit by something, fell, and fainted.
Soon, a sun parrot appeared and lit the torches stuck here and there in the cell with the flames it wore around its body.
Footsteps of boot soles scraping on the stone floor were heard, and the person who picked up the key from the fallen guard's waist was Cecil Duren.
“The operation has begun. Both on our side and the Alisa Merchant Group’s side. Thanks to that, the security here was practically non-existent.”
“Start, start, started.”
“I’ll also remove those magic control cuffs. You’ve been confined for half a day, weren’t you uncomfortable?”
He thought it would be fine since he was completing [The Strongest Mage's Bucket List], but he was bored to death. He would never come to prison again.
“What’s going on now?”
The ceiling of the prison shook repeatedly, and dust rained down. Cecil guided him, saying,
“Jihit, who escaped from <Ikegrad Penitentiary>, has come for revenge. In the process, he joined hands with the Black Church.”
“Revenge, revenge, revenge.”
“Lord Lista must have explained, but the two of them always aimed for the same things, didn't they? The position of the Sword Saint, and a woman… even Sena Apeltas. You know, Count Riland originally entered the Apeltas family as a son-in-law, right?”
This is a big problem.
He really had no idea what she was talking about.
“He thought he had lost everything, so he attacked Riland in the past but was defeated and imprisoned in <Ikegrad Penitentiary>. That Sword Demon has been released.”
However, [The Strongest] believes one should never be flustered in any situation.
As if he knew everything.
As if it was all according to his calculations.
He had to maintain such composure. Therefore, instead of asking about the situation, he decided to let out a relaxed laugh.
“Hmph…”
Then, Cecil, perhaps finding me truly vexing, let out a sigh of "As expected, you are…" and then said,
“You shouldn’t underestimate him. Jihit was originally a master swordsman who aimed for the pinnacle alongside Count Riland, and now he must be even stronger with [King's Flesh].”
And so, I was able to reach the entrance of the underground dungeon. Two guards were lying unconscious. Items like straw hats were also there.
“Taro and I need to guide the main office forces in. It's pathetic, but if I get involved in a battle between pinnacles, I’ll only be in the way.”
“What should I do?”
“Lord Lynn is a Glados (4-star) mage, the superior of all mages, so you don't need to take orders.”
Cecil Duren took off her disguise uniform and donned a splendid Special Operations Division robe, saying,
“Act as you wish.”