Chapter 93
Chapter 93
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: Flame Head
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Flame Head.
The suspicious figure who had impersonated the Abyss in the Resonance World.
And now, he sat before Leyzon in the guise of a young noble.
"It seems the advice I gave you didn't sink in too deeply."
"To think you'd show your face in a place this conspicuous."
Leyzon didn't deny it as he listened to the next words.
This whole affair had definitely carried some risk.
Even though he'd used Hanok as a safety measure, there were still those who could recognize him, like Flame Head.
And if one of them happened to be that Millennium Mage he'd warned about...
Leyzon might have been targeted.
But.
"So what."
Leyzon couldn't care less.
Screeech—
He slowly leaned back into the chair.
"What can you accomplish just by skulking around like that?"
Leyzon had his own insurances scattered here and there.
He'd never underestimated the Empire's power.
Right now, even, he was wearing a mask to conceal his appearance.
On top of that, Syria and Iden's detection fields were always active.
The moment anyone even slightly suspicious approached, the two undead would alert him immediately.
To tell Leyzon to move around without any risk...
Was basically the same as telling him to hide away for life.
"I'm advancing in my own way."
Leyzon's goal was to achieve the endings.
The dungeon ending and the nation-building ending.
He couldn't just hole up forever to reach them.
Hiding away solved nothing.
And here was this guy, who knew nothing, calling him reckless.
It was starting to grate on Leyzon's nerves.
"I don't think you have the right to spout off like that."
Leyzon curled up the corner of his mouth in a smile.
The smile carried a clear warning.
Flame Head stared at him blankly for a moment before letting out a hollow chuckle.
"Well, you're not wrong about that."
Flame Head had no right to lecture the Abyss.
"I'm just warning you, as I said before. I don't want to see you, the Abyss, come to harm."
Leyzon could tell Flame Head meant it sincerely.
Which only made him more curious.
Why was this guy going so far out of his way to defend him?
'He knew an awful lot about the Abyss.'
Leyzon had no idea what Flame Head's true aims were.
"You're looking for traces of the Blue Bird Knights, right?"
Soon, Flame Head brought up a different topic.
"Looks like you didn't want to live in a birdcage either."
The birdcage that Flame Head had mentioned in the Resonance World.
Hearing this, Leyzon narrowed his eyes.
He himself had once compared this world to a birdcage.
Flame Head was referring to the entire Empire as the birdcage.
The massive cage enclosing the framework of the Empire.
"So, is your goal to live outside the birdcage?"
Flame Head let out another hollow laugh at Leyzon's question.
"Birds aren't the kind of creatures meant to be trapped somewhere."
A bird that should soar freely through the skies, confined to a tiny cage.
There could be no greater misery.
"I'm going to shatter the birdcage itself."
The birdcage Flame Head pointed to was the Empire.
In other words, he intended to destroy the Empire.
Leyzon narrowed his eyes at that.
'Could it be.'
The Empire that randomly fell in a hundred years.
Was this guy the one responsible?
Leyzon still hadn't grasped the key to the Empire's downfall.
So anyone with even a hint of possibility was worth considering.
"And then build a new birdcage."
A new birdcage.
Leyzon's eyes narrowed further at those words.
"You're going to bother rebuilding what you just broke?"
"Not an unstable one like this, but a sturdy birdcage.
A lot of birds who've lived their whole lives in a cage have forgotten how to survive in the wild."
Flame Head was dead serious.
Leyzon couldn't see his full plan clearly.
But he could tell it was an enormously grand scheme.
"That won't be easy."
"That's why I've been preparing."
A faint trace of irritation flickered in Flame Head's gaze.
"Things were going smoothly until you started moving, Abyss."
Leyzon recalled what Flame Head had been up to.
Gathering necromancers and impersonating the Abyss.
It seemed those were all steps toward toppling the Empire.
But Leyzon's emergence had ruined it all.
"Serves you right for going around impersonating others. Who told you to?"
"I needed the power of multiple necromancers. But you went and wrecked it spectacularly."
A blue flame quietly flickered in Flame Head's eyes.
"This time too, and I have a feeling you'll keep getting in my way from now on."
Leyzon slowly pulled his knees up to his chest.
Then he curved his eyes into half-moons.
Before he knew it, Syria and Iden had taken positions on either side of him.
A tense atmosphere began to build.
The people around them passed by oblivious to the situation.
But at this moment.
One word from Leyzon, and the entire ducal territory could go up in flames.
"So."
Leyzon asked in a voice laced with amusement.
"You're going to take me out because I could ruin your plans?"
Killing intent rippled in the eyes of Syria and Iden.
Come on.
Leyzon made it abundantly clear what that meant.
The moment he gave even a slightly off answer.
The two undead would move in unison.
And if he decided this guy was an enemy, Leyzon had no intention of holding back.
Whatever the outcome, he'd smash Flame Head to pieces.
Seeming to grasp Leyzon's intent, Flame Head fell silent for a beat.
His expression suggested he was choosing his words carefully.
He had no intention of playing hero against Leyzon either.
"I have no desire to become your enemy."
As expected, Flame Head backed down first.
"What I want is cooperation. Or at the very least, advance notice so we don't obstruct each other."
Advance notice, huh.
Leyzon snorted derisively.
"What's in it for me?"
"I'll provide core information on the Blue Bird Knights."
Leyzon's ears perked up.
This time, he'd dangled something actually worth his interest.
"That's all?"
But Leyzon wasn't about to let it go that easily.
The Butterfly Mask in the Resonance World would dig up the info anyway.
He had no real need for it.
"...I don't know how much you actually know."
Well, Flame Head had misunderstood Leyzon multiple times so far.
Even today, he'd thought Leyzon captured Soaz on purpose.
He was overestimating Leyzon because of the Abyss's reputation.
'When in reality, I don't know much either.'
This game he'd played over and over.
Why were there so many new pieces of info popping up?
It felt like he was unraveling a new mystery every day.
So naturally, Flame Head knew far more.
'But I can't let him know that.'
Getting exposed wouldn't do him any favors.
"I know I must seem suspicious to you. That's why you figured out my connection to Soaz and captured her."
Just like now, Flame Head was the type to jump to conclusions.
He genuinely believed Leyzon had seen right through him.
'Building up all this tension, and the guy's kind of a klutz.'
And that's how he kept spilling info.
'If I ask the wrong question here.'
He'd give away how little he knew.
"Fine. If I have questions, I can just ask in the Resonance World."
If the guy had no intention of becoming an enemy.
Leyzon had no plans to make him one right now either.
Besides, he was curious about Flame Head's movements.
If this guy really turned out to be a factor in the Empire's downfall.
Leyzon wanted to keep him in sight as much as possible.
"In exchange, it's not like I'm deliberately trying to block your path."
Leyzon lied with an innocent expression.
"If you don't want to clash with me for no reason, tell me your next move in advance."
He could guess what the guy was up to based on his next steps.
"I'll hunt down the traitor in the Resonance World."
And out came a topic that piqued Leyzon's interest too.
The Empire's one and only dark elf.
Flame Head declared he would find the one hiding in the Resonance World.
"How much do you know about the traitor?"
"The world's only dark elf necromancer affiliated with the imperial family—there's no other traitor among the necromancers in the Resonance World."
As expected, Flame Head knew the traitor's identity too.
He just didn't know what form he was hiding in there.
"One thing's for sure: he knows soul system skills."
Not a few necromancers handled soul skills.
They were added to raise undead.
So most necromancers knew at least one or two.
'Even this guy right in front of me.'
Handling possession skills made him a soul necromancer.
He was an expert on undead in the Resonance World too.
A guy who'd studied all sorts of fields.
"That's hardly a solid clue."
"No, he's done a lot of dealings with the Transcendent Malice, so traces of it should be etched into his soul."
Leyzon's gaze sharpened.
"The Resonance World is a place only souls can enter."
"Exactly. So soon, I'll prepare a device to manifest the traces of the Transcendent Malice."
Souls couldn't hide everything.
Especially if you'd traded with the Transcendent Malice—the traces lingered somewhere in the soul.
Flame Head planned to expose them and catch the traitor.
"Sounds fun. When's it happening?"
For some reason, this guy had killed every last dark elf.
He was the type to plan on stealing Leyzon's undead too.
Leyzon fully intended to crush him.
"It's an operation I'll execute as soon as possible. You'll learn about it naturally when the time comes. I just need a little help from you when I reveal his identity."
Leyzon was willing to cooperate on that point.
The traitor knew a ton.
There was endless value in interrogating him.
"As long as you don't finger the wrong guy."
"That won't happen. You'll be convinced too."
With that, Flame Head rose from his seat.
He soon pulled a small orb from his pocket.
It was clearly marked with SS.
The orb was an SS-grade Skill Generator.
Leyzon snatched it from his hand the moment he saw it.
Finally, he'd gotten it back.
"Syria."
At his call, the shadows roiled.
Soon, a woman emerged from them.
She flinched timidly at the sudden light.
Her name was Soaz.
Flame Head's comrade.
"Soaz."
Flame Head called her name cautiously.
"Boss..."
She burst into sobs and threw herself into his arms.
Only in his embrace did Soaz finally relax and let her tears flow.
Flame Head gently stroked her hair.
Both were remarkably attractive.
Their embrace made for a striking scene.
But Leyzon had no appreciation for art, never having set foot in a gallery.
He remained utterly unmoved by their touching reunion.
Save the lovey-dovey stuff for home.
"Syria."
The shadows at Leyzon's feet parted like jaws.
He turned and left without so much as a goodbye.
"Abyss, the Judgment Lord is heading east."
Finally, Flame Head passed on one last piece of info.
Leyzon pulled out a sheet of blue stationery.
He flicked it toward Flame Head.
"Duly noted. Keep that safe."
It'd come in handy someday, no doubt.
Leyzon vanished with a faint smile.
After Leyzon was gone.
Flame Head let out a breath, still holding Soaz.
"...What an unpredictable bastard."
He didn't know all of Leyzon's inner thoughts.
His actions were always impossible to predict.
What his true purpose was.
Or if it aligned with his own.
He still couldn't say.
All he could do was vaguely think.
That the Abyss was the one closest to being the world's true mastermind.
At the very least, his movements had massively impacted the Empire.
A figure who might reshape it more than even the Emperor.
Recalling that chilling smile, Flame Head quietly swallowed a groan.