Chapter 297
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 297
Chapter Title: Enclosure
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After his encounter with his master Damian in the Other Dimension, Jun invested a considerable amount of time trying to understand the soul command etched into his very being.
'The most fundamental driving forces behind a soul command are two.'
One was, of course, mana.
The most basic ingredient of magic.
But the other was a bit unusual.
Spirit power.
The power most famously wielded by Maya, and generally speaking, the force used by mages who had reached the 7th circle.
Why would mages, who primarily relied on mana, use spirit power?
The answer lay in the signature ability of 7th-circle mages: the image realm.
Manifesting one's inner imagery outwardly.
And the soul command was another form of that image realm.
Designating one's domain with mana and controlling any beings that entered it.
But Damian didn't stop there.
He would implant his own imagery deep into the target's soul while controlling intruders in his domain.
That way, the target would remain under control even after leaving the caster's domain.
Continuously, until they could dispel the caster's spirit power embedded in their soul.
'Damian... Even as a human, he was nothing more than a mortal, and the same as a mage.'
When Jun first grasped the concept of this magic, his impression was bittersweet.
Damian was no father worth calling one. It was only natural, given he had targeted his own son's heart.
But from a mage's perspective, Damian was a fool.
He had the means to overcome the soul command's sole weakness right before him, yet he couldn't break free from his guilt.
'One of the few weaknesses of the soul command is that it requires spirit power to use.'
Spirit power was the one force in this universe—where everything shared and lived interconnected—that an individual could truly possess.
Thus, it was also the hardest ability to grow.
But according to Maya, spirit power could be substituted with mana.
—To put it simply, spirit power is the result of a soul's will transforming into mana.
If a soul's will could be converted into mana, then conversely, couldn't mana be substituted for spirit power?
Theoretically, yes.
But only theoretically.
The efficiency was atrociously poor.
But that didn't apply to Jun.
No matter how abysmal the efficiency.
It didn't matter to the [Demon God Body].
In other words, Damian had the method to overcome his only weakness right in front of him but couldn't bring himself to use it because of his guilt.
'It's all pointless thinking now.'
In the end, Jun had not only come to understand the soul command magic but had reached the stage of utilizing it. And now...
That power revealed itself to the world once more.
[Stop.]
Early dawn.
Inside the tent thick with sleep-inducing fumes that not even a level 7 monster could resist.
The bulk of the investigation team had passed out, oblivious to the situation, and the assassins who had drawn their weapons against them froze solid like ice.
'The mana consumption is heavier than expected.'
Most were level 6, with two level 7s among them.
One of the level 7s, who appeared to be Bishop Melier, was particularly powerful. Just halting his movements had drained a substantial amount of mana.
'Now I see why Damian weakened so much.'
Still, its performance was undeniable.
It had taken a lot of power in the preparation phase, but he'd neutralized an eight-man assassination squad without a scratch.
"You... are..."
Perhaps because it wasn't fully refined yet.
Even with his body rigid, the one who seemed to be Bishop Melier barely managed to open his mouth.
"I have someone else to talk to you."
"...Bishop Melier."
The Saintess emerged from behind Jun.
She gazed at Bishop Melier with an exceedingly complicated expression.
Bishop Melier's eyes shook violently.
"I'll handle the assassins' interrogation separately. For now, let's take Bishop Melier first."
"...Understood. What about these people?"
The Saintess pointed to the investigation team.
The safest option would be to leave them be until their mission ended.
But the sleep fumes had sunk in too deep. They were dead to the world now, but they'd notice something off when they woke.
There was a Plan B for this.
"Take them with the assassins."
"Yes, we'll do that."
As if she didn't want to show Jun any more of her tangled emotions, the Saintess ordered the waiting holy knights and quickly left the tent.
The cold dungeon.
Romanel opened his eyes exactly a full day after the assassination attempt.
"Where... is this..."
"You're awake."
"Ugh... You...?"
With a headache spreading through his body like a brutal hangover, Romanel barely pulled himself together and looked ahead.
His vision was blurry, but he easily recognized the man.
"Mercenary Captain...?"
"That's right, me."
"What did you... do to me..."
"Nothing."
"What...?"
"I didn't do anything to you all. All I did was move you to this dungeon."
"What does that..."
Even in his confusion, he looked around. A cold space lit only by torches.
He quickly realized this was indeed a dungeon, just as the White Whale Mercenary Captain said.
Then where were his comrades?
"You're the only one who's woken up so far."
"...What do you mean."
"Tch. The sleep fumes are still affecting you. Drink this."
"Get that... away..."
He offered a cup of water laced with the sleep fume antidote, but there was no reason for Romanel to drink it willingly.
"What did you... do to us..."
"...Well, it's up to you to judge. You're level 6, so I figured you'd listen once you heard. Here goes."
"..."
"There was an assassination attempt on you."
"Assassination...?"
"Yeah. An assassination group made up of level 6s and 7s infiltrated Merdane looking for you. They even spread sleep fumes. It was called 'Akeran's Ferry'."
"Who... would..."
"Beats me. Figuring out the culprit is your job. And for the time being, you won't be going outside."
"Shut... up. Who are you... to decide..."
All he could think was that he needed to report this outside immediately, but the mage looked down at Romanel with a cold expression.
"Who do you think benefits most if you drop dead?"
"What?"
"At the very least, we're the ones who lose out the most. Or rather, the Sun Church does."
"No way... you're saying..."
Perhaps from his experience as investigation leader, a very ominous thought flashed through his mind.
"I'll give you my answer."
The mage spoke again in a voice devoid of emotion.
"You're wrong."
With that, the mage rose and left the dungeon.
And left alone, Romanel couldn't think of anything.
After meeting Romanel, Jun headed straight to the next target.
Haley, a mage and Romanel's comrade, serving as his vice-leader.
He was the next after Romanel to be freed from the sleep fumes' effects. He drank the antidote Jun offered without hesitation and listened to Jun's words with clearer eyes.
"I see..."
After hearing everything, Haley's reaction was acceptance.
It was quite surprising.
Haley, like Romanel, had been raised by the marquis's house, hadn't he?
"You're taking it surprisingly well."
When Jun didn't hide his curiosity and asked why, Haley gave a wry smile.
"Looks like Romanel isn't accepting it."
"He didn't even drink the antidote like you."
"I figured. Romanel's always been like that. His loyalty to the marquis borders on obsession."
"Sounds like you're different."
"I was similar. Right up until last year."
"Not anymore?"
"Haha..."
Letting out a candid laugh, Haley rummaged in his pocket. Out came a cigarette.
"Mind if I light one up?"
"Go ahead."
"Thanks."
Haley lit the cigarette, inhaled deeply, and exhaled toward the ceiling.
"Last year, I attended a conference hosted by the Mage Association."
"...You were there?"
"Yes. And I saw you."
The duel with Heger, a Mage Association mage.
A bizarre conference that ended up as a duel instead of a paper presentation.
But all the more memorable for it.
"Most of us mages are either born of noble blood or raised in their shadow. I was no different."
In Haley's case, he was born a noble's bastard son.
"At my father's command, I was sold to the marquis's house young and trained as a mage."
"..."
"For me, magic was... like a cage I was forced into to survive. A pen for raising beasts."
To him, the sight of Jun at the conference looked like a beast shattering that pen.
Like a wild horse charging toward freedom.
"At first, I felt disgust. I thought it desecrated the essence of magic."
"And then?"
"As you know, 6th-circle mages must constantly look inward. I did the same. It took a long time, but I realized the source of that disgust."
"..."
"Funny enough, it was jealousy. The emotion you feel seeing someone with what you lack. I didn't realize it and spouted nonsense about the essence of magic."
Haley chuckled lowly again, reminiscing.
"For the first time, magic looked like magic itself."
Like a man confessing his sins before a god, Haley met Jun's eyes squarely.
"I tried imitating the magic you showed. It wasn't easy. A total mess. But thanks to that, I could face the world beyond the pen."
And what he saw was himself, still trapped in the pen.
His soul had escaped, but his body remained caged, gazing endlessly outward.
"I know it. Everything our investigation team did was far from justice. No, it was justice only for one man."
Marquis Owen.
Only before that name did their investigations ring true.
"Perhaps the soul that escaped me at that moment foresaw a situation like this."
The process of a beast, fattened in the pen, finally meeting the slaughter.
That was the source of the unease Haley had felt these past few days.
[Whoa... You've bitten off a huge incident again this time.]
"Ahem."
Cloi's voice came through the crystal orb. Jun offered no excuses.
'Mercenary work is important, but fundamentally, thwarting the Heavenly Church's schemes takes priority.'
This incident had happened before he could even consult Cloi.
But even if Jun had washed his hands of it, the marquis's machinations would surely have rippled to the White Whale Mercenary Corps.
[Sigh, yeah. Truth is, our side isn't in a comfortable spot either.]
And Cloi knew that well.
[Public reaction outside is split down the middle.]
"Half? That's surprising. I thought opinion would lean more toward the marquis."
[It did at first. But the other churches started moving.]
"Ah."
The Sun Church hadn't just chosen silence.
Of course, they'd mobilized all their connections to respond.
Those were the other churches.
Helping out this time wouldn't bring them any special gains, but churches were sensitive to external attacks.
If nobles banded together for profit, the churches had little reason not to unite.
It hadn't been that way before, but one precedent had forged them together.
The fall of the Ariclotos Church.
Decades ago, the Ariclotos Church crumbled swiftly, with nobles leading the charge.
For the potion business.
From the other churches' view, there was no guarantee the nobles wouldn't target them next.
"Things are getting interesting."
[Yeah. Anyway, the marquis house made a move. You know this isn't something you can just watch unfold.]
"Right. Some nobles seem too dumb to grasp the severity..."
[Yeah. The marquis... that guy... He's plotting a rebellion.]