Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: The Sorceress Council
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The castle of Viscount Sachsen, lord of the northern Demon Lord's domain.
The 'City Master's envoy' who periodically visited Dale would speak of the Guild City's ledgers through a secret code each time, and that day was no exception.
Until the focus vanished from the envoy's eyes, and he uttered those words.
“Wise and brilliant young lord of Sachsen. It is an honor to meet you.”
“……!”
“We of the Blue have finished preparing to fulfill our promise to you.”
The City Master's envoy, who was supposed to be contacting Dale in secret, was acting as an agent of the Blue Magic Tower's will, as if possessed by them.
The Blue Magic Tower of schemes and lies. From the moment the Empire began its continental war of unification until its end, they never broke their silence. But just because they remained silent did not mean they were taking no action.
“How did you find out about the Guild City envoy I've been in contact with?”
“As the saying goes, birds hear the words of the day, and mice hear the words of the night. No matter how desperately one tries to keep a secret… some things are bound to get out.”
The City Master's envoy, now a puppet of the Blue Magic Tower, opened his mouth.
“Enough with the pointless talk. Tell me the location where the Blue Magic Tower's 'Sorceress Council' is being held.”
“Ah, the council has already been convened.”
The Blue Magic Tower's puppet answered Dale's question. As Dale tilted his head in confusion at those words…
“And you, Young Lord Dale, as one formally invited to the council, have the right to attend.”
The City Master's envoy spoke, and a fierce wind, like a swirling blizzard, enveloped Dale. The scenery of the world he stood in changed completely.
In the next moment, Dale was no longer standing on the frozen lands of Sachsen. Around a large table, women in robes sat on chairs that towered like thrones. And before Dale, there was a single, empty seat.
Upon a land of biting cold, where a blizzard raged.
“I'm glad to see you again, Young Lord Dale.”
An unforgettable voice came from right beside him, and Dale turned his head. Beneath a hood, 'Titania of York' was smiling softly.
Sorceress. A female mage from the stories.
With the exception of Titania, the other sorceresses concealed their faces in the shadows of their hoods.
But from beneath their hoods, they expressed themselves with their own voices—some with alluring giggles, some with silence, others with wariness.
From ordinary humans to succubi and elves… even veiled beings who concealed their true nature, camouflaging themselves within this nation.
*These are the true powers who rule the Blue Magic Tower of schemes and lies.*
Officially, the 'Blue Magic Tower' was located at the southern tip of the continent, in the Antarctic land known as the Crystal Plains. In a sense, it was a symmetrical counterpart to the northern Duke Sachsen's family and the Black Magic Tower. But for the council they were hosting, physical distance and location were meaningless.
*An illusion? No.*
A high-level mental manipulation magic that transcended physical distance, binding the participants' consciousnesses together as if in a hologram. It wasn't difficult to guess who possessed the absurd skill to make this possible.
“You have made a truly difficult journey, wise young lord of Sachsen.”
A voice was heard. Across the table from where Dale sat, a sorceress was smiling. From behind the shifting shadows of her hood, a gentle female voice resonated.
“Then, may I ask, on behalf of the council, why you have convened it?”
“…Are you the one who stands at the pinnacle of this Blue Magic Tower?”
“How rude, to speak so before the Chairwoman, child of Sachsen.”
“Erje, I have not yet given you your turn to speak.”
The sorceress called 'Chairwoman' spoke, and 'Erje' fell silent.
“As you asked, young lord, I am the one who represents the will of the Blue Magic Tower.”
“What is your identity?”
“I am a loyal subject, awaiting the Shadow King to stand against the golden tyranny.”
“That simplifies things. I have convened you for two main reasons.”
Dale continued impassively.
“You of the Blue claimed you would be the standard-bearers fighting for the Shadow in the conflict against the Gold. Therefore, as the 'Shadow King,' I demand the loyalty the Blue Magic Tower can offer me.”
“Oh my, you speak as if you truly are the 'Shadow King.'”
“Is there any room for doubt?”
“As you are aware, young lord, we have been watching you carefully for a very long time. And we are deeply impressed by the talent and qualities you have shown.”
The Master of the Blue Magic Tower continued.
“However, it is still far too early for you to represent the Shadow and confront the 'Golden Monarch.' Therefore, it is with great regret that we of the Blue Magic Tower cannot break our silence.”
“I have no need for standard-bearers who only offer flattery and loyalty after I've already seized power.”
Dale replied coldly to her words.
“The only ones I need are those who will willingly stand by my side when I am at my weakest.”
The Master of the Blue Magic Tower remained silent at Dale's words.
“How very disappointing. Was the loyalty of the Blue Magic Tower nothing more than this paltry posturing?”
“How truly clever you are.”
The Chairwoman laughed, amused.
“We understand that you are not pleased with the Blue Magic Tower's 'silence.' However, more than you can imagine, we are already proving our loyalty to the Shadow Lord.”
“And yet you must remain silent about these things?”
“That is correct. Ah, speaking of which, there is no longer a need to remain silent about York's loyalty.”
“For now, that fact alone is enough.”
Dale replied.
“But keep in mind that my patience will not last long.”
“We will gladly keep that in mind. Now then, shall we hear the other reason you convened this council?”
“I came here to clear the debt that Lady Sephia owes to the Blue.”
The Mountain Assassins. A secret organization in elven society, composed of desert dark elves, that purges the 'outcasts' of the secular world. The Sorceress Council made a deal with them to save Sephia's life, and in exchange for that debt, they hold her life as collateral. A truly useful puppet.
“Oh my. Didn't Miss Sephia leave Sachsen? Is she not now a stranger with no connection to you?”
“Lady Sephia is the master who taught me things beyond words.”
Dale said.
“Even if it was all a puppet show performed within your 'silence.'”
“Oh my, your devotion to your master is truly admirable.”
“The desert dark elf organization… the Mountain Assassins. Disclose all the information and the details of your deal that the Blue Magic Tower possesses.”
Dale spat coldly at the smiling Master of the Blue Magic Tower.
“From now on, protecting Lady Sephia is no longer the role of you and your Blue Magic Tower.”
Even though she had already left his side, nothing had changed.
***
When the Sorceress Council concluded, Dale found himself back in his usual office.
“Ah, uh, uhh…?”
Likewise, the City Master's envoy, unaware of what had just happened, could only look around in bewilderment.
“Our business is concluded. You may leave.”
Viscount Sachsen, Dale, uttered impassively toward him.
“Ah, understood!”
At his words, the City Master's envoy bowed his head and withdrew. Immediately after, Dale, left alone in the office, stared silently into the air.
Thinking of the dark elves of the desert, of the land of scorching sand at the eastern edge of the Empire, where sandstorms raged.
***
The great labyrinth in the Demon Lord's territory ruled by Viscount Sachsen, the labyrinth city of Labyrinthus.
The project to develop the 'Demon Lord's Lands' in that area was still proceeding smoothly. Those who conquered the labyrinth, those who accepted requests to subjugate the local demons, all the necessary people gathered to perform the necessary tasks. And only when they encountered a situation they could not resolve did the people of House Sachsen begin to move.
Even when Dale was away attending to his duties, the system he had established ensured that the Demon Lord's Lands were slowly being illuminated, pushing back the darkness.
Around that time, a new power began to gather in Viscount Sachsen's lands, seeking to fulfill the anti-demon alliance Dale had previously promised to House Lancaster.
***
“Ah, it is truly a pleasure to see you again.”
A beauty with blood-red hair was there. She wore a form-fitting red uniform and a pointed, blood-red hat.
“I never imagined I would get to see the young lord of Sachsen like this…”
The high elder of the Red Magic Tower, Lady Scarlet.
“I never imagined the Red Magic Tower would be so passionate about developing the 'demon lands.'”
Dale feigned ignorance, as if it were none of his business, but Lady Scarlet smiled without a care.
“Oh my, of course not. We of the Red Magic Tower are always desperate for the 'peace of the Empire.'”
Then, with the mages of the Red Magic Tower she led behind her, Dale rose from his throne.
As the ruler of this Demon Lord's territory and Viscount Sachsen, he tried to fathom the ulterior motives she and the Red Magic Tower were hiding.
Nothing had changed. The Blue Magic Tower and the 'Sorceress Council' had begun to move, and the Red Magic Tower had also started to gather under the pretext of helping with the development of the Demon Lord's territory.
Soon, the 'White Magic Tower' would also break its silence upon realizing that the holy relic of its first master, the holy sword, had been broken.
Excluding the Green Magic Tower, three towers were gathering. At the same time, Dale had not forgotten the ruler of this land.
That the frozen lands of Sachsen were the domain of the Black Magic Tower and the Lord Black, who inherited the primeval darkness—and by extension, the territory of the 'Shadow Lord.'
***
At that moment, in the deepest chamber of the Imperial Palace.
“Your Majesty, I trust you are in good health.”
A voice echoed from the darkness. It was the voice of the Master of the Red Magic Tower, the Lord Crimson, Marquis Yuriseu.
“…We have intelligence that the Blue Magic Tower has broken its silence and attempted to contact the 'Shadow Lord.'”
“Shadow, you say.”
From within the silence, a man's voice finally resonated.
The one who reigned at the pinnacle of the Empire of Fire and Light, the Golden Monarch.
The Golden Emperor, Arthur Pendragon Magnus.
“I am truly sorry to say this, Your Majesty, but there are a growing number of people concerned about the 'silence' that you and the Imperial Family are maintaining.”
“What is it you desire, Lord of Fire and Blood?”
The 'Golden Emperor' himself, standing at the apex of the Empire, asked back. Lord of Fire and Blood. Words unimaginable for the ruler of an Empire that proclaimed itself the only nation on earth.
“Please, grant us permission to move Your Majesty's flesh and blood… the golden lineage.”