Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: A New Theft
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The Twin Prodigies Squad, led by Anix.
The group's members were mostly from the Staron Kingdom, it seemed.
Anix was one of Staron's key figures, so it was only natural.
He must have recruited them all well before even enrolling at the academy.
Among them was Elfin Emilia, one of the Three Heroes.
She was still tall—even compared to Krash, who was quite big, there wasn't much difference.
When her eyes met Krash's, she gave a brief nod in greeting.
'I wonder who Charlotte has gathered around her.'
He was curious, but decided not to bother checking.
For some reason, he had a feeling it would be a bunch of oddballs.
"This is Krash Valheim—I assume you all know him. And this is Haring Lagren, daughter of the Poison King, one of the Ten Great Under Heaven."
As Anix gave a brief introduction on their behalf, the others showed clear signs of displeasure.
And most of those looks lingered on Haring.
The Poison King belonged to the Empire.
So naturally, Haring was expected to align with the Empire faction.
Yet here she was, joining them even if just for this one practice run.
They probably didn't like the idea of their info leaking out.
But Haring's expression remained coldly impassive amid those stares.
"I have no intention of prying into the Later Geniuses' information."
She voiced exactly what the Twin Prodigies Squad members had been thinking.
It was honest enough, but that only made the others frown more.
[She's isolating herself on purpose.]
As Crimson Garden had said, Haring gave off exactly that vibe.
He felt a slight twinge of concern because of her past connection to Bianca before his regression.
But the Poison King destroying House Hardenharts hadn't happened yet.
Krash decided not to worry too much about it.
"Let's skip the rest of the introductions and get moving. Our destination this time is the magic city of Deb Ram."
If the magic city of Halgram had the Red Magic Tower,
then the magic city of Deb Ram had the Yellow Magic Tower.
Deb Ram's lawless zone was famous for its sun-scorched desert expanse.
Due to the tricky terrain of the desert, it was one of the lawless zones people avoided most.
'This is gonna be a real ordeal.'
As Krash thought that, Anix began leading the group.
Raheln Academy had secured cooperation from various regions and connected teleportation magic circles to countless cities.
So getting to the city was as simple as filing a teleportation request form—not too difficult at all.
Thanks to that, the journey itself was leisurely.
"Lord Krash Valheim, it's been a while. Do you remember me from the Star Sanctuary event before?"
"I'm Siendal Jormar! First time meeting you like this. I was really impressed by your exam at the academy. As expected of a Valheim!"
Perhaps because of that spare time, the Staron members kept approaching him with small talk.
Since they were the ones Anix had brought, they were all destined to hold key positions in Staron's future.
"Yeah, thanks."
So Krash responded casually enough.
They were thrilled just that he replied, whether in informal speech or not.
It was a moment that really drove home how big the Valheim name was in Staron.
[I figured he'd brush them off like some spoiled brat. Didn't expect him to actually respond.]
What was the point of making enemies now?
Krash had no intention of clashing faces with these guys anyway.
The real one who might cause a clash was the guy leading at the front.
Unlike Krash, no one came near Haring.
Even though they'd be practicing together today, not one showed any interest.
"Activating the magic circle."
In the meantime, one of the squad's magic scholars activated the teleportation spell.
With the magic taking effect, Deb Ram's city center came into view.
Anix stepped into the magic circle first.
The rest followed soon after, and Deb Ram's downtown appeared before their eyes.
Deb Ram was a thriving city dotted with palm trees.
A massive, transparent magic dome blotted out the sky, blocking the desert winds from outside, allowing those inside to live in great comfort.
And at its center stood the Yellow Magic Tower, majestic beyond words to anyone who saw it.
"I've already gotten support from the Yellow Magic Tower. They were happy to help—everything from meals to our inn in the city is prepared."
Anix said this while glancing their way.
The others already knew, but it was news to Haring and Krash.
A glint of suspicion entered Krash's eyes.
"Anix, so what mission did the Yellow Magic Tower request?"
Raheln Academy's requests were posted directly through the academy's commission board.
There were three main types.
The first: World Erosion.
Scores varied based on the stars attached to the World Erosion.
But if no high-difficulty ones popped up, results could be underwhelming.
The second: Hunting Erosion species that emerged outside World Erosions.
Ones that didn't usually leave their World Erosions without good reason.
However, not all Erosion species stayed put—some ventured out occasionally.
Hunting those yielded results.
The third: Criminals.
Capturing wanted fugitives posted across the world.
Some were easy; others dangerous.
And the dangerous ones naturally involved the World Eroder's kin.
Traitors to humanity who sided with the World Eroders.
Every nation had them all listed as wanted criminals.
Of course, World Eroders themselves appeared on wanted lists too.
'But students can't handle those, so we exclude them.'
So squads picked one commission as their practice, depending on the situation.
Of course, since students chose freely, risks were involved.
But danger was part of it.
Everyone here was an adult.
They bore their own responsibility.
And that's why they underwent six months of rigorous training.
The six months at Raheln Academy was a kind of test.
Failing the standards meant no squad assignment.
They'd repeat another six months of training until they passed.
All the first-years here had cleared that training.
Considering Krash had failed that exam five times back in the day,
everyone here had walked the elite path.
'So none of them are the type to drop dead somewhere.'
Raheln Academy's practice period lasted three years total.
By the end,
graduates would transform into peerless experts with invaluable experience and skills.
This was Raheln Academy's bold claim of hero cultivation.
'And the Yellow Magic Tower wouldn't just offer support for nothing.'
The Yellow Magic Tower.
Anix claimed they gladly helped, but they were infamous skinflints.
Maybe because desert resources were hard to procure smoothly.
The Yellow Magic Tower never gave up their stuff easily, no matter what.
Yet they were providing inns, meals, everything?
The mission's difficulty had to be no joke.
Anix smiled.
"Better to see for yourself, right?"
He glanced at Elfin beside him, and she handed Krash a paper with the mission details.
Krash took it, and Haring quietly sidled up behind him.
She was probably curious too.
But being short, even on tiptoes behind him, she couldn't see well.
"Just come around to the side."
Krash angled the paper so she could see, and Haring stepped up without a word.
The two began reading the mission.
The details were as follows:
Capture a criminal hiding in ancient ruins in the desert lawless zone beyond the city walls.
The criminal's name: Juyo Irma.
A former Yellow Magic Tower magus, now an Erosionist handling World Erosion species.
And this guy seemed to be kin to a World Eroder too.
The problem: His World Eroder's info hadn't been identified yet.
'Don't remember any Juyo Irma.'
Krash racked his brain briefly before giving up.
There were too many World Eroder kin to memorize them all.
Even keeping track of the World Eroders themselves was dicey, with their numbers.
He only recalled kin tied to major incidents, like the Slaughter Hounds.
'Haven't fought without prior intel in a while.'
Instead, Krash focused on the ruins mentioned in the request.
Then his eyes suddenly widened.
The ruins had one key feature:
- The ruins only appear at night.
Krash remembered this trait.
"That ruin has anti-magic wards. With Juyo Irma holing up there, the Yellow Magic Tower's in a bind."
The next explanation confirmed it for him.
After all, magic didn't work there by design.
This ruin was a god's tomb.
Magic was power that defied providence.
The god's power, upholding providence, rendered magic inert.
And Krash knew exactly which god.
The God of Night.
A human demigod who overreached for true godhood, only to have even his name stripped by the gods—a fallen deity.
This altar was his resting tomb.
'The problem's the one connected to this place.'
During the war against the World Eroders.
One World Eroder had cleverly fortified here.
Its name: Moon Rabbit.
A World Eroder whose power grew stronger as the moon neared the sky's center.
Its siege had been a massive headache.
Magic didn't work.
It hid by day, emerging only at night.
Moon Rabbit exploited both relentlessly attacking the Yellow Magic Tower under cover of night.
Ironically, the one who felled Moon Rabbit was one of the Heavenly Killing Spears: the Magic Emperor.
The Magic Emperor, a demigod like Martial Emperor Balok Valheim.
He hijacked the tomb's power, converting the entire ruin into a magic circle.
The ruins flew off wholesale, awakening the slumbering God of Night's fury.
That wrath stole the night away, prolonging eternal daylight until the god's power waned.
Krash's face twisted.
'Damn it, Arthur deliberately let Moon Rabbit slide.'
Arthur's secret arts tied to the sun.
White Night was perfect for him.
Thanks to it, Arthur gained the upper hand in the World Eroder war.
And that became his springboard to becoming the world's center.
Back then, Krash had been fighting other World Eroders with the Generation of the Sky.
So the realization hit late.
There were so many major events, and the Magic Emperor had handled it anyway.
'Looking back, it was all part of Arthur's plan.'
A wry laugh escaped him.
After regressing, Arthur's baffling actions finally made sense.
It reaffirmed one thing.
Arthur would exploit anyone without a shred of guilt if it served his path.
'I was planning to approach Arthur carefully.'
Who knew what a cornered Arthur might do.
'The fake Arthur.'
So he needed a way to approach without revealing himself.
Then a good idea flashed through Krash's mind.
'Deal with that later.'
For now, handle the God of Night's tomb first.
Thanks to the memory, Krash could guess the Erosionist Juyo Irma was Moon Rabbit's kin.
Moon Rabbit must have eyed this ruin early on.
And in his current state, Krash had much to gain from the God of Night's tomb.
Krash had the Lunar Yin Physique.
Combined with Heavenly Slaughter Star, its traits were amplified.
Daytime fatigue built faster, sure.
But his Annihilation Erosion capacity had definitely increased.
That trait made nights far easier for him.
In other words...
'A chance to steal the night.'
If Arthur wanted White Night, Krash wanted endless night.
Night was when Lunar Yin Physique shone brightest.
Krash's eyes gleamed slowly.
It was the face of one who had spotted prey.
A chance to become a graverobber stealing a god's power.