“Ah, you’ve arrived.”
It was around the time Jun reached the Black Forest Fortress and was about to head toward Chloe.
Jun came face-to-face with a soldier standing guard near Chloe’s quarters.
“A letter has arrived for you, sir.”
“A letter?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm… thank you.”
After receiving a letter with no sender’s name, Jun went into Chloe’s room.
“Jun!”
Chloe who was looking much better than before greeted Jun warmly.
“Have you been well?”
“Of course! It’s been a busy time in many ways. But… are you alright?”
In a rare display, Chloe asked about Jun’s condition without hiding her emotions.
It was understandable. This plan had been difficult to imagine going smoothly like the previous ones.
Even Chloe had advised him to reconsider multiple times as they devised the plan.
After all, infiltrating a Magic Tower led by a seventh-circle mage was a reckless undertaking by any standard.
“Well, I nearly died once, but I gained a lot from it too.”
“Hah… Even just waiting around made my heart race like this. I really have to give it to you for that iron will of yours.”
With Chloe’s sigh of relief, Jun shrugged and took a seat.
Then he opened the letter he had received from the soldier and skimmed its contents.
“What kind of letter is it?”
“I don’t know. I was just about to find out.”
The letter hadn’t included a sender’s name, but after glancing through its contents, Jun could tell who it was from.
It was, of course, a letter from Eleanor.
“Hopefully, it’s nothing too serious. By the way, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“For a while… it might be best to keep a low profile.”
“Right. That’s probably for the best, considering how big this has gotten.”
At the heart of this recent incident were Chloe and the Gillen Merchant Guild.
The terrorist incident that suddenly occurred at the Black Forest Fortress. The Count’s name was tarnished because of it.
Even this alone had made several figures in Blackout wary, but then a bigger incident erupted.
Rumors of treason had surfaced in the Volkatornic Mage Tower.
While the attack could have been dismissed as a personal insult to the count, the mere mention of treason changed the story entirely.
The matter quickly escalated, and several influential figures in Blackout turned their attention to the count’s movements.
And all of them began to harbor a single doubt.
— Who could have uncovered the secrets of Volkatornic?
All eyes turned to that question.
By now, word had spread that the Volkatornic Magic Tower’s vault had been raided.
Everyone wondered who had the daring and skill to breach the tower’s magically fortified defenses and break in.
Naturally, the Gilen Merchant Guild was among the suspected groups.
For now, though, it seemed they were still considered an unlikely culprit.
“If your name starts spreading more from here, you’re bound to attract some unwelcome attention.”
“You’re not wrong.”
The problem was that Chloe too hadn’t yet finished cleaning up.
The Gillen Merchant Guild, which should have been controlling the flow of information, was in a half-destroyed state.
On the surface, where communication was difficult, they would need time until reinforcements arrived.
It wasn’t like they’d send just anyone as backup.
This incident had dealt Chloe a significant blow.
With her already limited influence within the guild, the loss of her colleagues would leave a lasting stain on her record.
But if you look at it the other way…
The recent events had made it clear to everyone that Chloe had formed a solid connection with the true power behind Blackout, the Count.
To the Gillen Merchant Guild, this would be seen as meaningful progress.
With that, the number of supporters would likely increase.
And with that, the number of her enemies within the guild would increase as well.
Chloe’s rising position meant that the influence of her siblings would shrink.
It’s going to be a difficult fight.
In the midst of all this, the one Chloe felt truly sorry for was Jun.
In a way, he had lost those people because of me.
In the end, the real issue was that Sergey had discovered Jun’s existence.
The Mage Association. That was the only time I’d seen him.
With [Excellent Memory], he dredged up one of his body’s memories.
Before Jun had taken residence in this body, he had seen Sergey from a distance at an Association gathering his master had taken him to.
Sergey must have remembered him from then and recognized his identity.
And when he realized I was someone with Mana Body was probably… right after Damian’s magic tower collapsed.
No matter how he thought about it, there was no other time when Sergey could have figured out he had Mana Body.
Even his Master Damian had only ever announced that he had an exceptional disciple; he hadn’t gone around spreading word that he had the Mana Body.
Will something like this happen again?
His mind was a tangle of thoughts.
It felt like, because of him, Chloe had suffered wounds she never wanted.
And he feared similar outcomes would happen again.
Maybe this is just selfish whining.
It was as if [Unwavering Heart] were speaking directly to him, telling him that this was the choice he had to make to survive.
He understood it in his head, but it was a truth hard to accept in his heart.
Perhaps that was why.
He must not have been managing his expression very well, much like Chloe.
“…To be honest.”
“……”
“When I first accepted their deaths, there was a moment when I resented you.”
“……”
“But in the end, choosing to accept you was still my decision.”
“Chloe.”
He didn’t want her to blame herself.
Yet he also realized that if she did, it might bring him some comfort.
It was a petty thought that filled him with self-disgust.
“Every choice comes with its own price, doesn’t it? And you gave it your all.”
The fall of the Volkatornic Magic Tower was now just a matter of time.
The biggest problem, the Tower Master Sergey, had been rendered powerless after suffering fatal wounds during his soul transfer.
Perhaps once the Count wrapped up his investigation, Sergey who was still in his unconscious state would eventually fade into nothingness.
For a man who had ascended to become Tower Master by reaching the seventh-circle, it was an almost absurdly empty end.
Still, he had effectively achieved revenge for those who had lost their lives in this crisis.
“If we just give up now because we’re scared, it would only dishonor their deaths. So, let’s keep moving forward, partner.”
“…Thank you.”
“Anyway! The conversation went a bit off track. Let’s get back to the main point.”
“You’re saying too many eyes are on us now?”
“That’s right. Drawing attention in a situation like this isn’t going to help us.”
Chloe knew that restoring order after this disaster would take far more than just a few months.
“I need time until I can protect you.”
“So the bottom line is that we need to lie low until then?”
At this, Chloe let out a small sigh and nodded her head.
They’d had a similar conversation once before.
It had been much the same when they first uncovered the collaboration between the Arobatty Merchant Guild and the Volkatornic Magic Tower.
“From here on, your opinion is important. I’ll fully consider any option you want.”
Should they seek the Count’s protection until things settled down?
Or, as mercenaries, should they keep working?
Chloe seemed inclined toward the former, if possible.
“Well, the timing couldn’t be more perfect.”
Jun held up a letter he was carrying and said,
“There’s a job offer somewhere out of the public eye.”
“…A job offer?”
Taking the letter from him, Chloe scanned it quickly and immediately frowned.
“What? You actually want to go here?”
“Is there anywhere else that’s more deserted?”
“But even so!”
“Don’t worry. I’ll come back alive and well this time too.”
Their next destination was set.
It was the city of the dead and a level 3 field. The Silent City
***
Another month passed.
Grooooar――
For all three of them, this time had been deeply significant in different ways.
Jun used the time to consolidate his foundation after reaching the fifth-circle.
Krrrrk, Kururrrk―!
Maya grew more skilled in controlling her killing intent.
During her fight with the bandaged woman called Illora, she realized that her own killing intent could become a critical weakness.
Kyaaaahk, Kyahk!
Aiden too had come to a breakthrough regarding the aura which was the ultimate power of warriors.
Up until now, Aiden had thought of aura as something that simply made a strong sword even stronger and tougher.
Kihihihi―!
But after the battle with Illora, that vague image of aura had been shattered, and in the month since then, he’d reached a deeper understanding while reconstructing that image.
Aiden could feel it instinctively.
His current skill level was close. Soon he would reach the aura.
If only he were given an opportunity to channel that realization into a real battle, the day would come when he would finally hold the aura in his hands.
This was why, over the past few days, he’d felt an intense urge to wield his sword.
Grrrrrr―!
That is until they reached this place.
The City of the Dead
“……?!?!?!”
Aiden swung his sword wildly at the approaching undead.
There wasn’t a shred of insight or clarity in his strikes.
If it weren’t for the swordsmanship ingrained in his body, anyone watching might have mistaken his movements for those of a third-rate thug, devoid of the slightest trace of composure.
Jun sighed at the sight of this.
Thud―!
He smacked his forehead.
“Come to think of it, that guy’s never really faced an undead before, has he?”
The City of the Dead was too much of a barrier to entry for someone who was still hesitant about killing people.
Looking back, this wasn’t actually Aiden’s first encounter with the undead.
There had been plant-type undead back in the Black Forest.
However, those plant-type undead were quite far from true undead.
Their bodies were covered in grimy moss, and more importantly, their movements were sluggish, not at all what one would expect from the undead.
In contrast, the undead within this level 3 field known as the Silent City were as real as the undead reputation they carried far and wide.
“Aiden… are you all right?”
“Haah… haah…! I-I’m so sorry…!”
It wasn’t so much that he was terrified; rather, it was a reaction stemming from sheer, visceral disgust.
Of course. Corpses that should be lying dead are just wandering around in plain sight.
Even an ordinary person who saw a moving corpse would feel their body freeze up.
They’d either have to run or fight back.
One way or another, a response was natural, but the brain needed a moment to process such a grotesque sight.
Maya, on the other hand, seemed utterly unfazed by the scene――
Kihihihihihik――?!
A ghost appeared just in time to be struck by Jun’s [Fireball] then disappeared without leaving a trace.
Then he sensed a presence behind him.
“……”
“……”
There stood Maya. Her expression was as unreadable as ever, yet somehow her face seemed even more intentionally blank than usual.
“What are you doing?”
“……”
“I said, what are you doing?”
“Leader.”
“Yes, go on.”
“A powerful enchantment. I’d like a very, very powerful enchantment.”
Maya’s voice was as serious as he’d ever heard it, but a distinct tremor ran through her words.
“Hearing you use such a difficult word like ‘enchantment’ … it brings tears to my eyes.”
But she’s…
She’s from the Ancestor-Worshipping Tribe… She’s from a tribe that communicates with the souls of her ancestors…
And yet here she was, absolutely terrified of a ghost…
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