Chapter 167: But the Bus Flipped
Chapter 167: But the Bus Flipped
Every stat except for Durability and Dexterity had increased.
Even my Magic stat, which was becoming increasingly difficult to raise, had ticked up from 21 to 22.
In terms of pure mana capacity, I had long since surpassed Elisha, and I was now likely at a level similar to or slightly higher than Carla.
Of course...
"Guegh... Is that all, Student Yandel?"
I was still no match for Iona, who currently had her face scrunched up as if she’d just downed a glass of green juice accidentally blended with caterpillars.
I looked down at the empty blood transfusion packs scattered at her feet and asked, "That’s the last of them... but are you really alright, Professor? It feels like the number of packs you need is steadily increasing."
"I'm fine, I'm fine. It's not that I'm low on mana; it's just that my bloodlust builds up the more I fight. Even if beast blood is inefficient, blood is still blood."
"If you say so... Well, if you're fine, then I guess it's fine. I'll show you the location of Kundal Port first."
Recalling the map I had seen on my mini-map, I drew a rough sketch on the ground.
"From here, like this... There’s a row of warehouses located a bit away from the harbor and the village..."
"Hmm? It’s smaller than I thought. It’s spacious, but not quite the scale you were worried about, Student Yandel."
"What you see isn't everything. These guys rely on the undead as their main force, so they have a tendency to bury everything underground. You saw the branches we smashed so far, didn't you? They were all subterranean."
"Aha? Aha? So, if we assume the entire area around the warehouses is a field of undead, just like the other branches..."
"The entire port village is harboring undead beneath it. It’s not called the armory of Narrow-minded Usurpation for nothing."
"...Surely the villagers aren't all believers of Usurpation, are they?"
Iona fell silent, the playful expression vanishing from her face.
Her gaze turned chilling, as if she were ready to wipe the entire village off the map if necessary. Even though her intensity wasn't directed at me, the sheer weight of her emotions made me gulp involuntarily.
"It’s similar, but a bit different."
"Hmm? Hmm? What does that mean? They’re either cultists or they’re not."
"They aren't believers, but they’ve been brainwashed over a very long period. They’re working for Narrow-minded Usurpation regardless of their own will."
"...The whole village?"
"Yes. The entire village."
One of the representative powers of Narrow-minded Usurpation is the Magic Eye.
The effects of Magic Eyes vary wildly, but there is one type that almost always makes an appearance.
The mental-interference Magic Eye.
The residents of Kundal Port appear normal on the surface, but they exhibit twisted behavior regarding anything related to Narrow-minded Usurpation.
For instance, if asked if they’ve seen any undead recently, they’ll subtly try to change the subject.
If asked if they’re hiding anything in the warehouses, they’ll feign innocence and claim they’re storing something else—but every person you ask will give you a different answer as to what that "something" is.
Despite that, if you try to inspect the warehouses, they’ll foam at the mouth and charge at you, screaming about outsiders stealing.
Most importantly, if you point out these inconsistencies, they’ll repeat the same phrases over and over like a broken machine.
They don't worship the Evil God... but their words and actions clearly serve to protect the followers of Narrow-minded Usurpation.
"They probably intend to use them as hostages or meat shields if things go south."
"Right, right. No matter how much you pickle their brains with Magic Eyes and curses, maintaining mental control over that many people is difficult. ...By the way, are they beastkin again?"
Iona let out a deep sigh.
Kundal Port is a small village located on the outskirts of Crassius, the beastkin kingdom.
Most of them aren't from the Levantine Empire, but that isn't an issue. Academy professors and students belong to the Academy, not a specific nation.
Furthermore, treaties are in place allowing the subjugation of cultists in almost any region of any country, with only a few exceptions.
The real problem was the fact that the dominant race of the Crassius Kingdom was the beastkin.
If the Elves had their combat power halved by having their spirits sealed, the beastkin had a fatal weakness discovered during the last war.
Born with powerful physical abilities and high pride, the beastkin are a race of great warriors...
However, the very wildness that makes them strong has the drawback of eating away at their sanity.
For example, they might lose themselves in the heat of battle and attack friend and foe alike, or their bodies might burn with heat when they go into estrus during certain periods.
Because their instincts are stronger than any other race, they carry many such problems.
Of course, the beastkin aren't fools, so they undergo their own training to control this.
The problem is that by focusing so much on controlling their own instincts, they become vulnerable to external mental attacks.
Because of this, during the early stages of the War of the Gods, they were utterly decimated by cults like Narrow-minded Usurpation or Ugly Prosperity, which stimulate the mind and instincts.
Just as their innate strength is immense, it is equally difficult for them to escape their innate weaknesses.
Iona was clearly remembering those times.
"Still! Still! It’s not like there’s no way! It’ll take a little time, but I just have to concentrate the impact underground instead of on the surface, right?"
"Oh? You can do that? I was just going to say that since we have plenty of potions, it’s fine as long as you don't kill them..."
"Scary! But I'll keep that in mind! As insurance for an emergency!"
For a long while after that, I shared all the information I knew and reviewed the plan with Iona.
And by the time I felt certain we were ready...
I took Iona’s and Carla’s hands simultaneously and surrendered my body to the mana surrounding us.
*
Woooong—
The sensation of leaping through space was now quite familiar.
Along with a strange nausea, the dark red mana light that had obscured my vision slowly dissolved into the air.
I quickly took in the surroundings, which had changed drastically from a moment ago.
The sky was burning orange as the sun began to set.
The vast sea sparkled, reflecting the light of the sky.
And finally, the sight of fishermen wrapping up their day...
"...Huh?"
There were no fishermen to be seen.
Just in case, I looked toward the village instead of the shore, but it was the same there.
Because we had moved to a spot slightly away from the village to launch a preemptive strike with wide-area magic, we had a clear view of the area around Kundal Port.
But no matter where I looked, nothing moved.
Only a heavy, desolate silence hung over the village.
"Professor? I think something’s wrong."
"...No. No. It looks like we’ve come to the right place. Yes. Exactly the right place."
Iona’s voice trembled.
Staring at the lifeless village with a deadly serious face, it was as if she were seeing a different landscape than I was.
I glanced over at Carla and Elisha; they didn't seem much different. They were tilting their heads, clearly not understanding why Iona was acting this way.
But the confusion was short-lived. Iona pulled a bottle containing gray ash from her robes.
The strange ash was swirling inside the bottle on its own, even though she hadn't shaken it.
It felt as if it were reacting violently to something.
"Professor? What is that...?"
"It’s the ash left over after burning one of Ayla’s arms."
"...What?"
Why was the Professor’s sister coming up now?
At my dumbfounded voice, Iona tucked the bottle back into her subspace with a trembling hand.
"You know, don't you, Student Yandel? That I’ve been searching for Ayla for a very long time."
"Of course. I’ve read your diary and heard it from you directly."
"It’s not like there were absolutely no results over the last 300 years. Just once. I managed to find Ayla."
In that battle, she had succeeded in tearing off one of Ayla’s arms.
But that was it.
Ayla had ultimately managed to escape Iona, and she had been hiding somewhere for decades since then.
The research Iona had been conducting—even going so far as to pluck the hair of the Bald Professor—was to find a way to track Ayla’s location using that severed arm.
That research had been a partial success, resulting in a substance that would react if the arm's original owner... Ayla... was nearby.
She had found a way to establish a connection from the damaged body part; she just needed to succeed in tracking it, but she’d hit a wall there, which was why she’d been massacring the Bald Professor’s hair.
"And, and. Do you remember what the branch manager we interrogated first said?"
"A meeting of high-ranking priests from the Evil God sects... Could it be?"
"I’m not certain. But if that’s the case, it explains why Ayla is here, doesn't it?"
Since the Evil Gods had not yet recovered enough to appoint Apostles, a Cardinal-level heretic was essentially the head of their respective church.
Therefore, even if high-ranking priests gathered for a meeting, it usually meant Archbishops were meeting.
But this was the armory of Narrow-minded Usurpation.
Even if they were all part of the Evil God Alliance, strictly speaking, they were different churches. They wouldn't just reveal such an important facility to anyone.
If Sophia wasn't enough, they sent Ayla, a Cardinal... if you think of it that way, it roughly makes sense.
Of course, she might just be visiting for some other reason.
The important thing was that Ayla was here, and that something ominous was happening.
Those were the only two things that mattered.
Iona, having finally grasped the situation, turned to us.
"Anyway, anyway. This changes things. It’s too dangerous here, so you all go back. I might be able to handle an Archbishop, but I don't have the leeway to look after others while fighting a Cardinal-level opponent."
"But our promise..."
"I don't know what your circumstances are, but they aren't more important than your life, are they? I'll send you back via teleport immediately, so go."
She was right. No matter how important achievement hunting was, it wasn't worth my life.
"What about you, Professor?"
"I..."
Iona hesitated for a moment, then curled one corner of her mouth into a smirk.
"I have to finish what I started."
"......"
She was talking about her final showdown with Ayla.
This wasn't something I could talk her out of. Iona’s entire motivation was revenge.
A flame that hadn't been extinguished by the Great War or 300 years of time wasn't going to go out just because of a death threat or my interference.
Iona was going to fight Ayla today and see it through to the end.
No matter what the conclusion might be.
"...I'll call for backup immediately. That’s alright, isn't it?"
"That’s plenty! Plenty! Though it might all be over before they arrive."
Putting on a bit of bravado, Iona stood before us as we held hands.
This time, she didn't take my hand.
"I'll send you straight to my laboratory. Since you're traveling a long distance all at once, you might feel a bit nauseous!"
Saying that, Iona drew a circle above our heads.
Once again, a massive amount of dark red mana bloomed, obscuring our vision.
Now, if I just closed my eyes and opened them again, I’d see the familiar sight of Iona’s lab.
From there, I’d have to immediately report this to the Church of Righteous Light and the Academy.
Whether it was another branch or a direct line to the royal family, I had to make sure backup was sent to Iona right away.
That was all I could do.
Well, if I wanted to be specific, I could also tell them the weaknesses of every Archbishop-level cultist I knew.
After that, I could only hope that Iona and the reinforcements fought well.
Suppressing the bitterness in my chest, I rehearsed what I had to do over and over.
However.
When I blinked, the scenery before us hadn't changed.
Shatter—!
With the sound of breaking glass, the curtain of dark red mana was torn to shreds.
Iona clicked her tongue, and in the distance, a single figure came staggering toward us.
Iona took a step forward as if to shield us.
"Run back. Now."
The moment the something surrounding Iona vanished, a suppressed, seductive aura began to dominate the surroundings.
She was giving up the leeway to control her Charm and was preparing to use her full power.
In a voice mixed with a strange intimidation and a honeyed sweetness, Iona shouted again.
"The teleport was blocked, so I can't use it! Run to the nearest village immediately! I'll hold them off here!"
As soon as Iona finished speaking, familiar faces appeared behind the staggering figure.
Seeing the bizarre mix of Bishops and Archbishops from various churches, I realized it instantly.
The Iona bus had flipped.