An Ominous Presence (4)
Ellen was taken aback by Brady’s words.
“I knew Brady was someone high up in the Black Magic faction, but I never imagined he was the leader himself. I had no idea.”
Brady then revealed yet another truth.
“Lord Ellen, the name Brady was actually an alias. My real name is Gordon Arbel. You may call me Gordon.”
Everyone and their mother is using fake names these days. Still… that name sounds familiar.
The name Gordon Arbel was clearly etched somewhere in Ellen’s memory. The more he turned it over in his mind, the clearer the once-hazy recollection became.
Most records concerning Enis were classified, so he had never known the full details. But Gordon Arbel’s name had definitely been there.
The Second Enis Uprising.
It had been a revolt of the prisoners, with Gordon Arbel at its center. Ellen did not know the precise course of events, but the uprising had been crushed completely. The wardens here might have been men sent out from the center like exiles, yet they were still proper knights. More than anything, members of the Chedleton family who had been dispatched as inspectors at the time had earned great merit by putting the rebellion down.
“Lord Gordon, this uprising must be delayed no matter what.”
Gordon nodded at Ellen’s words.
“If that is your will, Lord Ellen, I will obey. But may I ask the reason? At this rate, Ethan Gronlead will be purged. If that happens, the dark mages will lose their chance to rise again.”
Ellen explained his reasoning with careful clarity so as to put the man’s doubts to rest.
“It is true that the Chedleton family currently holds the advantage in the struggle for power. But they have not yet seized complete control of the political world. The Gronlead ducal house is not so easily broken. There are still forces that support them.”
The House of Gronlead.
They were a family that placed the highest value on the pursuit of magical truth. Their creed was that anyone could become a mage and that anything could become magic. They had supported every school of magic that did no harm to human life. If such a house as Gronlead were threatened, those who had received their aid would never simply stand by.
In fact, until Rick Chedleton had played his decisive role, the support of countless magic schools had kept the Chedletons from achieving total victory. That meant time still remained.
“There is still time. They may be able to purge Ethan Gronlead here on Enis, but that will not immediately bring about the fall of the Gronlead family.”
Brady fell silent for a moment, considering Ellen’s words, then finally spoke.
“My thinking was shortsighted. I will follow Lord Ellen’s command.”
Fortunately, the answer was a positive one. Ellen nodded and continued.
“In order to carry on my master’s will, I needed to grow stronger. That is why, in the end, he told me to come to this laboratory.”
“Yes. I will provide whatever support you need so that your training is not hindered.”
“Ah, and would it be possible for me to meet Ethan Gronlead?”
“Yes. I will arrange a meeting on tomorrow’s rest day.”
Ethan Gronlead’s eyes narrowed. His gaze traveled slowly up and down Ellen’s figure.
“Brady told me. You asked to see me?”
“Yes. My name is Ellen. I requested this meeting because I have a proposal for you, Lord Ethan.”
Distrust flickered in Ethan’s eyes.
“And what sort of proposal would someone like you have?”
“I heard that a purge will take place soon.”
At those words, Ethan glanced carefully around them. It was a rest day, yet wardens still stood at various points throughout the area.
“What of it?”
“I will help you escape, Lord Ethan.”
Ethan closed the distance between them still further.
“Escape? Explain yourself in detail.”
He already knew he was a target of the purge. Though he was a member of the Gronlead family, he was by no means a key figure. In the present situation—and especially from inside Enis—he knew even his own house would be unable to help him.
“There are too many eyes around us. I will come to you on the day of the escape and explain the method then.”
“If I can simply get out, I will be able to receive the protection of my house. In that case, what must I do for you?”
Waiting any longer would only mean death. He was clutching at straws when he put the question to Ellen.
“The Chedleton bastards are using my parents to threaten me. Protect my parents from the Chedletons. That will be enough.”
“Your parents? That much is easy. Once I am free, I will take them under my protection myself.”
Ellen allowed a faint smile to touch his lips. If they entered the protection of the Gronleads, he would no longer need to worry about his parents separately.
“Then I will come to you tonight.”
“Very well.”
Clank.
In the hour when everyone was asleep, the sound of a firmly locked iron door swinging open reached Ethan’s ears.
Unlock?
Ethan, who had still been awake at that late hour, doubted his own hearing. It was unmistakably the sound of a door opening under the Unlock spell.
He’s using magic?
He looked down at the bracelet locked around his own wrist—the very thing that had stripped him of all magic, just as it had stripped everyone else.
“Fall asleep. Sleep.”
Ellen whispered the incantation under his breath, casting the Sleep spell over everyone present except Ethan.
“Shall we go?”
“How are you able to use magic?”
Clink.
Ellen raised his left arm and showed him the bracelet.
“It seems I simply ended up with a defective one.”
Ethan understood the meaning behind those words.
“So you have no intention of telling me. I’m curious, but so be it. Let’s hurry.”
He decided not to press the sensitive point. Right now, escape came first. With magic available, their chances of getting out of this place were far higher.
“Conceal us. Hide.”
As Ellen spoke the spell, both of their forms turned transparent.
Rumble.
They opened the floor of the communal laundry room. In the days leading up to this, Ellen had been extending a tunnel bit by bit. The passage, branching like an ant’s nest, led all the way outside Enis.
“You really went and did something completely insane.”
Walking along the tunnel Ellen had carved, Ethan could only feel staggered. He had never imagined anything like this existed beneath the ground of Enis.
“No one ever pays attention to what’s under the earth. Their overconfidence in these bracelets was a mistake as well.”
What did this boy come here for in the first place? It feels like he arrived with some purpose of his own.
Ethan tilted his head, then simply continued to follow Ellen. After what felt like a long stretch of walking, Ellen, who had been leading the way, came to a stop.
“Excuse me for a moment. Float. Levitation.”
Whoosh.
Ellen’s and Ethan’s bodies rose into the air until they touched the ceiling.
Thud.
Once he reached the ceiling, Ellen drove his fist into it.
Rumble.
The ceiling split open, and moonlight poured through the gap.
“Where is this?”
What met Ethan’s eyes as he stepped outside was a forest dense with trees.
“A forest near Enis. If you head south from here for a single day, you will reach the great city of Vin. But the moment morning comes, a wanted order will go out all the way there.”
Rustle.
Ellen drew a cloth pouch from his robes. When he loosened the tied mouth, a golden powder glittered inside.
“Is that Dispel Powder?”
Ethan, well-versed in magic, recognized it at once.
“And of the highest grade, at that. Before that, though…”
Ellen retied the pouch.
“I truly apologize, but may I make a request so that I can be certain?”
“Certain?”
Ethan had half-raised his arm, then, feeling a little awkward, brought his hand to his head instead as he spoke.
“It is not that I doubt you, Lord Ethan. But since I am still inside Enis, I would feel more at ease if there were some token that could prove your promise.”
“Hahaha. So you cannot trust me?”
Ethan asked with an exaggerated laugh.
“Being stuck inside Enis has made me anxious. I must ask this of you.”
Faced with Ellen’s polite bearing, Ethan nodded.
“I am hardly in a position to refuse that proposal. You know how to make a deal. It is true that I owe you my life, so take this.”
He drew a handkerchief from his robes. The seal of the Gronlead family was embroidered upon it.
“This is what a member of the house gives when he has received aid. It means the bearer is to be treated as an honored guest. Will this be enough to convince you?”
“It is more than enough. Thank you for your consideration, Lord Ethan.”
Accepting the handkerchief, Ellen sprinkled the Dispel Powder over Ethan’s bracelet.
Sizzle.
The bracelet on Ethan’s wrist glowed, and the sound of the magic formula unraveling filled the air.
“So this is how you were able to use magic. Where on earth did you get something like this? Enis is supposed to have no contact with the outside world at all.”
“I happened to find it in the mining grounds. Forgive me—I cannot tell you everything right now.”
“Mysterious to the end, I see. Very well. I will not forget what happened today. And do not worry about your parents.”
“I leave them in your care.”
Ellen bowed his head. Once Ethan reached Vin, the Gronlead family would be able to move from there. And with that, his parents’ safety would be secured as well.
All that remains now is to grow stronger here on Enis.
Every spell he learned from Proveng was efficient and built for combat. The laboratory held a wealth of spiritual medicines and elixirs. Far removed from the Chedleton family’s surveillance, the conditions for growth could not have been better.
Just wait a little longer, Rick Chedleton.
He began to hone the blade of his revenge.