Chapter 42
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: A Sudden Descent
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It all happened so suddenly.
Pernyan, now in charge of the merchant caravan, had applied for a field practicum and left the academy a few days early under the pretext of making preparations.
Naturally, he wasn’t attending his classes, which meant Ruina had temporarily lost her assigned partner.
“…”
This time, however, Pernyan had explained the situation in full, so she wasn't as upset or angry as before.
Still, it did make her classes a bit awkward.
Given the academy's precise student numbers, finding a temporary partner for her just because one person was gone was a tall order.
“Aaron.”
“Yes, Professor.”
At the call of Professor Rosalia, who taught *Combat, War, and Magic*, a teaching assistant from her research lab stepped forward.
Messy brown hair half-covering his gloomy eyes, slumped shoulders. He didn't make a very good first impression.
“You'll be Ruina Bercefe's partner for the time being.”
“Me, ma'am?”
“Just match her at a second-year level.”
“But Professor, my research…”
“Is there a problem?”
Seeing the faint furrow in her brow, Aaron quickly shook his head.
“No, ma'am. I'll do it. So, I just need to adjust to a second-year level?”
“Yes.”
It might have sounded arrogant, but considering he had already graduated from the academy and was on the path to becoming a professor, it was a reasonable statement.
“It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Ruina Bercefe. I look forward to working with you.”
“Uh, yeah, nice to meet you. I'm Aaron Prain. As you can see, I'm a TA in Professor Rosalia's lab. Same here.”
Aaron finished his introduction in a mumbling voice.
“I never thought I'd be paired with an underclassman as a TA. The situation's a bit strange, but let's do our best.”
“Yes.”
Then, Ruina's gaze happened to drift downward.
“You must like books.”
Aaron was holding a thick book. It was a bit odd, as TAs rarely carried such things with them during class.
“It's a magic book. I'm a bit slow, so I always carry it around to make sure I'm familiar with the magic circles and such.”
“Oh, I'm sorry.”
“No, it's fine. I know it's weird for a mage to always carry a magic book, but, well.”
“Haha,” Aaron laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
“Ah, by any chance, Ruina. Do you like books too?”
“I don't dislike them.”
“Oh, really?”
“Class will now begin.”
The corners of his mouth twisted strangely, but Ruina, having turned her attention to the professor, didn't see it.
***
As the sun set and darkness fell, Pernyan began his final inspection for the caravan's departure the next day.
“Is this the carriage?”
“Yes.”
The single carriage now before Pernyan.
All the other carriages had been inspected during the day, and none had any issues.
This last one, however, was not something to be checked in front of everyone, which was why he had come out secretly in the dead of night, after everyone was asleep.
The staff pulled the carriage into the guild's warehouse. Once the doors closed, only Pernyan and the branch manager remained.
“From the outside, I can't sense anything.”
“We sealed it with great care. The elves were a great help, so it went more smoothly than expected.”
Pernyan activated his magic. *Rumble.* Mounds of earth rose up and quickly lowered the cargo from the carriage.
All the supplies that had been perfectly packed for departure were cleared away, and soon, only a single crate remained.
It measured roughly 50 centimeters wide and 2 meters long.
Its surface, which looked ordinary at a glance, was covered in all sorts of magical inscriptions.
Mana stabilization, mana concealment, odor blocking, life force suppression, and dozens of other overlapping enchantments.
“An Archmage would be the only one who could possibly detect this.”
Or maybe not. Perhaps even an Archmage couldn't find it. But since Pernyan wasn't an Archmage himself, he couldn't be certain.
“We've inscribed the warehouse with the same level of magic for this work. It's safe to open it here.”
“Can anyone open it?”
“You need the token.”
The branch manager handed him a small ring. It was engraved with the seal of the Friedien family.
“Two tokens were made. You will have one, Young Master, and the other will go to Aria Friedien, the representative of the Friedien family.”
Pernyan brought the ring to the lock. With a faint stir of mana and a *click*, the crate opened.
Pure mana swirled through the warehouse as a small sapling was revealed.
A tree containing an incomparable amount of magical power, yet still somewhat lacking compared to the great pillar that supported the world.
“So this is it.”
The Branch of the World Tree, also known as its avatar.
It was indeed a worthy medium for summoning a demon.
*'From the outside, it doesn't feel like it's been tainted by demonic energy at all.'*
What could be the reason? Was it not yet tainted, or was the taint so subtle that it was undetectable?
“It's probably the former.”
It had to be. If this was its tainted state, then the demons' subtlety was on a level no one could ever hope to uncover.
“Sir? What is?”
“No, it's nothing. Who has personally seen this?”
“Only the vice-manager, myself, and you, Young Master.”
Pernyan closed the crate. The suffocatingly dense mana vanished in an instant.
“Bring me a list of everyone who knows about this as quickly as possible.”
“Yes, sir.”
The branch manager didn't bother asking why.
There wasn't any profound reason. It was simply that he couldn't assume the Vile Breeds' spies were only among the elves.
It was always best to be thorough.
“You may leave. I'll examine it a bit more and then put everything back as it was.”
“…Yes, sir.”
After a moment's hesitation, the branch manager left the warehouse. Alone, Pernyan placed something inside the crate and sealed it.
Anyone who opened this crate again was in for a rather delightful surprise.
***
“We're moving out!”
“Moving out!”
The next day, the caravan departed from the Friedien capital as scheduled.
Ten carriages, a hundred guards from the Golden Turtle Merchant Guild, a unit of fifty elves provided by the Friediens, and a hundred workers.
Pernyan led them from the front.
“What's our route?”
“Simple. We'll head east through two territories to the port city of Kaide, then take a ship to the academy.”
“Will there be any danger?”
“Not on land, at least.”
The two territories belonged to an ordinary viscount and baron. They had neither the power to challenge a force of this size nor the nerve to touch the property of two Electors.
But the sea was a different story.
“There's already been a precedent.”
“You mean the Yacht Club incident?”
“Yes.”
The advance of hundreds, perhaps nearly a thousand, Sea Worms. And the three Sea Serpents that had been the finishing touch.
Thanks to the exceptional talents and abilities of the academy students, and Pernyan's preparations, the incident had fortunately ended with only a few injuries.
*'But there's no guarantee it will go that smoothly this time.'*
He couldn't even begin to imagine what the demons would try next.
“Ah! Speaking of the Yacht Club, can I get an invitation?”
“You never get tired of asking, do you?”
“Why not? I have excellent grades and a powerful family. Honestly, if not me, who else would get in?”
Aria asked brazenly, her eyes wide with feigned innocence.
On the surface, there was nothing wrong with her words. Except for the fact that she was a Friedien, and the Friediens were newcomers.
Among the Elector families, the only one that didn't look down on the Friediens was the Fallenberg family, who only cared about money.
After all, it was the Fallenbergs who had brokered the deal when the Bercefes sold their rights to the Golden Bull.
“Even so, the answer is no.”
He wasn't prejudiced, but there was no need to accept her and incur the wrath of the other Electors.
“Well, if that's your answer, I can't help it. I'll just have to try again next time.”
Surprisingly, Aria gave up cleanly.
The caravan proceeded smoothly without any issues. But about two days in, a few drops of rain began to fall.
*'If it starts like this, the schedule will be delayed.'*
*'This can't be the work of those Vile Breeds, can it?'*
The rain grew heavier. The ground turned to mud, and seeing the deepening ruts of the wagon wheels, it seemed they couldn't go any further today.
“Is there a town nearby?”
“It's at least three hours away. And it'll take even longer in this mud.”
“We have no choice. Secure the perimeter. We'll make camp here for the night!”
“Yes, sir!”
After confirming the area was clear, the campsite was set up. Pernyan called the caravan managers to discuss the schedule ahead.
“Make sure the goods are thoroughly protected from the rain, and post guards to watch the camp and the wagons.”
“Yes, sir.”
“It's impossible to set off again today, so we'll assess the situation tomorrow and decide then.”
“Yes, sir.”
But the rain, not content with pouring all night, continued to fall the next day.
“We'll have to delay our departure a little longer.”
*'This is going to set back the whole schedule.'*
But that wasn't the real problem.
Just as he finished lunch and was busy reassessing the route and readjusting the schedule, Aria came in.
“Am I interrupting?”
“What is it?”
“This rain… it's a little strange.”
“The rain?”
It was an excessive downpour, but it wasn't that unusual for rain to be this heavy…
*'Could it really be the demons' doing?'*
The faint sense of unease he'd had since the rain started began to grow.
“What's strange about it?”
“I was wondering when it would stop, so I had the spirits go check on the rain clouds.”
“And?”
“They say there's an unusually large mass of dark clouds. They're still gathering, but everywhere else, except for right where we are, is perfectly clear. Not a single cloud in the sky.”
“An artificial rain?”
“At least, that's my assessment.”
A report from spirits was trustworthy. Pernyan stood up.
“Let's go outside.”
“Are you going to check?”
“I brought a device that can detect magical energy. It should be able to tell us whether this rain is artificial or not.”
Pernyan couldn't confirm it himself on the spot, but he could trust the performance of an artifact made by the Dragon God Cult.
*'It detected demonic energy, after all.'*
Just as he had that thought.
He was one step too late.
*CRUUUUMBLE—*
A roar assaulted his eardrums.
The ground shook.
“Huh…?”
“It's an earthquake!”
“Young Master!”
Screams erupted from all around. The ground had caved in.
As his body plunged downwards, Pernyan instinctively activated his magic. A massive, flat rock shot up like a disc, supporting a portion of the collapsing ground.
The falling members of the caravan managed to halt their descent.
“Are you all right?”
Aria was using the power of spirits to steady herself in mid-air.
“No.”
Pernyan shook his head.
The collapsed ground was wider and deeper than he had thought. The darkness below was profound.
And within that darkness.
*Kirrrrrr—*
*Kieeeek—*
Crimson eyes began to glow.
“Damn them. Is it always caves or underground?”
Why did the events of the Prophecy Book always lean in this direction?
In any case, the thick, cloying demonic energy was definitive proof that this was all the demons' handiwork.