Hunter or Prey (3)
"Black mages and black magic are like a plague."
"They are dreadfully harmful to people, and if left alone they spread so swiftly that an entire domain can be ruined in the blink of an eye."
Countless black mages who read those lines rose up in protest, calling them slander. But the ears of the scribe who had carved that single sentence into the history books never heard their voices.
Every black mage who rose up was already dead.
At whose hands? The Empire’s knights and inquisitors.
The Empire applies a principle of zero tolerance to black magic and demons. Whatever the purpose, whoever the perpetrator—ask nothing, spare nothing, annihilate everything connected to them. The rule the Empire proclaimed recognized neither rank nor borders.
That was the Empire’s mission.
“Why do you think they call it black magic?”
Najin, eyes closed in meditation inside the carriage, listened to Merlin’s voice. She sat perched on the wall, chin propped on her hand, speaking in a bored drawl.
“Magic is fundamentally a discipline that eats up an insane amount of time. Unless you’re a genius like me, you’ve got to start from the letters that form the foundation of magic, then the structure of circuits, the understanding of circles, the architecture of spells… there’s a mountain of things to learn.”
Merlin shrugged.
“A genius like me understands it all at a glance, but ordinary people don’t—”
“Skip the Merlin parts and just give me the point.”
“…You’ve been pretty cold to me lately, haven’t you?”
I’ve simply learned where to cut you off.
When Najin muttered that, Merlin grumbled but continued her explanation of black magic.
“The point is this: black magic ‘shortens’ those complicated processes. And it shortens them massively.”
How?
Merlin answered with a sigh.
“By using living sacrifices. You dump every cost and every step required to cast a spell onto someone else. The more sacrifices you have, the greater the power.”
She sketched on the dirt floor with a fingertip.
“Human fingers. Ornaments carved from human bone. And sometimes even flasks with living humans ‘stored’ inside them. Those are the things black mages always carry around.”
Just hearing it made one’s brow furrow.
Najin clicked his tongue and muttered,
“There’s a reason they call it black magic.”
“Exactly.”
Anyway, Merlin continued,
“And that’s the key to dealing with them. What’s the one edge a black mage has over a normal mage? Instant casting and amplification through sacrifices. Smash every sacrifice or medium they can use, and that’s the end of it.”
Then you go boom-boom like this.
Merlin flicked her fingers in a little exploding gesture.
“I learned that the hard way after grinding a whole bunch of black mages into paste, so carve it deep into that thick skull of yours.”
She shrugged as she spoke, looking rather pleased that she had gotten the chance to show off her knowledge.
The city of Regenoff.
After stepping down from the carriage and following a knight’s lead, they arrived at a conference room where those participating in the operation had gathered. The moment Najin entered, a middle-aged man who looked every bit the employer greeted him warmly.
“Your reputation precedes you, Adventurer.”
The man welcomed Najin with practiced warmth.
He introduced himself as Hite, the one entrusted with command of this operation by the lord of Regenoff.
Even after Najin’s arrival, people continued to file in. Once the inquisitors had finally assembled, Hite began outlining the operation.
“Our target is the black mage Faube, estimated at the Fourth Circle. Of particular note is that he possesses the Masterpiece Fire Shadow…”
The briefing went on for some time.
The information on Faube was not much different from what the knight had already told him. Letting Hite’s explanation wash over him, Najin surveyed the people gathered in the room.
Knights, a mercenary captain, and inquisitors.
Najin’s gaze lingered briefly on the inquisitors.
White priestly robes embroidered in blood-red. Combat priests bearing the sigil of the Holy Blood Church. Instead of the scriptures and maces ordinary priests carried, they held keenly honed longswords and spears.
“The last confirmed location of Faube is the underground waterways. Sightings there have been accompanied by continuous traces of black magic.”
“That’s enough.”
A priest rose, cutting Hite off mid-explanation.
He appeared to be the leader of the inquisitors. He addressed Hite curtly.
“We will operate independently, centered on the waterways. The Holy Blood Church has its own methods.”
He did not even bother seeking permission.
Yet neither Hite nor anyone else present seemed particularly offended; they simply nodded. From ancient times, hunting and crushing black mages had been the work of the Holy Blood Church.
In this field, those men were the experts, and the room seemed content to respect an expert’s judgment. After the inquisitors departed, Hite resumed speaking.
“I’m sure the priests of the Church already know this, but for those of you less familiar with black mages, I would like to share a few points of caution and methods of engagement. Does anyone already know something useful?”
Najin raised his hand.
“I’ve heard that smashing the sacrifices or mediums black mages use is highly effective against them.”
Information from Merlin.
Coming from an expert who had ground any number of black mages into paste, it had to be accurate. Yet when Hite heard Najin’s answer, his expression turned rather complicated.
“Ah…? You’re not wrong, but… that’s a rather outdated method. Hardly anyone uses it these days.”
He gave an awkward, embarrassed smile.
He was trying to put it politely, but what he meant was that it was an ancient, obsolete approach. Najin muttered inwardly,
And you called it a method for dealing with black mages?
-……
Merlin fell silent.
After a moment she spoke again.
-…He just doesn’t know. Back in my day, that was how everyone did it.
Najin realized he would need to filter any information that came from Merlin, who had been active nearly a thousand years ago.
“I’ve summarized information that should prove useful when facing black mages. Please read through it at least once. And…”
After distributing the documents, Hite drew a breath.
“Adventurer Ivan, please come this way. There are matters I need to discuss with you separately.”
Najin nodded.
Once the mercenary captain and knights had left, Najin found himself alone with Hite and learned of the special clauses attached to this request.
“So in other words…”
Najin summarized what he had just heard.
“You want me to finish this as quickly as possible—preferably faster than the inquisitors?”
“You’ve understood perfectly.”
Hite nodded.
The faster the resolution, he promised, the higher the reward for the commission.
“Why do you think we hired an adventurer at all when we could have simply left everything to the inquisitors? Precisely so we can resolve this as swiftly as possible.”
The reasons he laid out were roughly as follows.
Five inquisitors had already died at Faube’s hands. If that number rose any further, or if Faube’s estimated threat level increased, things would become extremely… inconvenient.
“Inconvenient how?”
Najin asked for the reason.
Hite answered with a deep sigh.
“The Executioner of the Holy Blood Church will come.”
The Executioner of the Holy Blood Church.
That was a being Najin knew as well.
“The Executioner… Yuel Razian?”
“Yes. Exactly her.”
If the Holy Light Church had its Lighthouse Keepers and the Holy Body Church its Star Incarnation, the Holy Blood Church had its Executioner.
Sword Master Yuel Razian.
Najin had roughly encountered information about that existence known as a murderous fiend. After all, Yuel Razian had been among the candidates capable of drawing Excalibur.
“If a black mage of a certain threat grade or higher appears… she tends to move personally.”
Even when the matter was not one that required a Sword Master to intervene, Yuel Razian still moved. As long as she had a pretext to wet her blade with blood, she was more than willing to set out.
And the moment that happened, everything was over.
The Executioner of the Holy Blood Church possessed immunities, extraterritorial rights, and summary judgment authority exceeding even those of the Church’s own pontiff. The instant a figure of that caliber set foot in a domain… the place simply turned into a slaughterhouse.
“The saying that catching one black mage ends up burning down an entire domain didn’t come from nowhere. His Lordship wants this matter cleanly resolved before the Executioner of the Holy Blood Church decides to move.”
The moment Yuel Razian moved, the domain would become a sea of blood, and every enterprise in this rapidly growing commercial city would freeze solid. Hite was telling him they had hired him precisely to prevent the situation from escalating that far.
“…Is one person really enough, then?”
Listening to all this, Najin tilted his head.
It was not that he lacked confidence in his own skill, but if Hite’s words were true, then one man seemed insufficient. If they were that worried, shouldn’t they have hired more people?
“Ah, no need to worry about that.”
Hite smiled at the question.
“We hired one more exceptionally skilled adventurer from the adventurers’ city to work with you, Ivan. You’ll likely be operating together with him.”
He’s probably already waiting, Hite added, opening the door and stepping outside. Following him, Najin arrived at a place where a man stood with a poncho pulled low over his head.
“….”
The man regarded Najin in silence.
The instant their eyes met, Najin felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. A chilling gaze. Eyes like those of a predatory beast. Even as that cold dread prickled through him, Najin narrowed his eyes.
He knew this man’s features.
He had seen them on a portrait hanging in the Central Guild. The moment their gazes locked, the name rose unbidden.
Kaufman Teosis.
Hawk’s Eye, Kaufman Teosis.
One of only five White-grade adventurers in the city.
Hawk’s Eye, Kaufman Teosis.
Najin was well acquainted with the stories surrounding this adventurer, formerly a ranger of the Techel Mountains.
The White-grade adventurers who stood at the pinnacle of the adventurers’ city were all celebrities, and he had a personal interest in the man called Kaufman as well.
Kaufman Teosis was a ranger.
And when one said “ranger,” the first person Najin thought of was… Horce, one of the rulers of the underground city.
Of course, he’s nowhere near Horce’s level.
Still, he was curious about the combat methods of those called rangers. As their gazes remained locked, Kaufman was the first to approach. With every step he took, the nameplate hanging from his neck swayed.
A pure, snow-white nameplate.
Proof that he was a White-grade adventurer, the apex of Cambria. Confirming that his guess had been correct, Najin also stepped forward to meet him.
Thud.
Kaufman stopped at the midpoint and extended a hand first. It was an offer of a handshake, and Najin took it. Kaufman spoke first.
“I’ve heard the story. Red-grade adventurer Ivan. Looks like we’ll be working together on this job. I’m Kaufman Teosis. Need an introduction?”
Najin shook his head.
“I’ve heard more than enough. I look forward to working with you.”
“Good, you’re quick. First, we’ll infiltrate the waterways as well and pursue the black mage. You’ve heard the terms of the request, I assume? The employer says speed is everything, so I intend to move fast.”
Kaufman pointed toward the entrance leading into the underground waterways.
“We overtake the inquisitors. We kill the black mage Faube before he can create any more casualties. Understood?”
A rapid summary of the essentials.
Najin nodded.
“Good. Let’s move.”
There was no need for small talk.
Just as they were about to pass through the entrance into the waterways, Kaufman nocked a bolt onto his ballista and asked Najin a question.
“Need a lantern? I’ve got good night eyes so I don’t need one, but you might.”
“Mine are decent as well. I should be fine.”
“That so? Well then…”
Gazing into the darkness that blanketed the underground waterways, Kaufman let out a short, dry laugh.
“Either way, be careful.”
Clack—the heavy sound of a bolt locking into the crossbow rang out.
“In dark underground waterways like these, no one knows who ends up the prey and who ends up the hunter.”