Chapter 66
Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Carriage Escort (4)
Not long after the carriage set off, a duo of black mages appeared.
They unleashed over a dozen chimeras they'd kept waiting nearby all at once and attacked us with their full arsenal of black magic, but...
"Urk!"
The waist of the black mage pinned beneath my golem bent like a bow.
He tried to slither out from under the golem like a centipede, with only his upper body detached, but...
I quickly maneuvered the golem to snap both his arms.
"Kaaah!"
A shrill scream echoed out, and soon the mana he'd concentrated in both hands scattered.
He was completely subdued, left only awaiting death.
"You bitch, how the hell did you evade my sight and hide...!"
"Because it wasn't some amateur trick."
The other black mage, who had started the fight with one arm already severed, had been defeated by Beth and breathed his last.
The chimeras they'd unleashed had all been taken down via Black Hole as well.
I'd appropriately regulated my power, so we'd exterminated them without major damage to the carriage.
This qualified as an overwhelming victory.
But...
"Keheheh... Killing us won't help. No, by killing us, you'll only let Him discover you sooner."
The black mage cackled as if his own life meant nothing.
"Who is He?"
"The one closest to our god. His sword will pierce your flesh, and you'll be reborn as an eternal follower..."
The black mage's words didn't reach their end.
Beth, who had returned by then, had cut off his last breath.
She severed one of his fingers and stored it in her pouch.
Afterward...
"Let's go."
The halted carriage resumed climbing the forest path.
*That one*.
The black mages were a considerable force.
And among them, a black mage who wielded a sword... there was only one.
*Evilblade Ivan.*
Enchanted by the Demon God's sword, a black mage who served him.
Anyone struck by his sword would immediately suffer a mental attack.
Abnormal status: False Faith.
A form of enchantment that made one desperately believe in the Demon God.
*...This'll be tricky.*
To face Evilblade Ivan, one needed a means to resist his sword.
My current mental strength was barely sufficient.
It wasn't that I couldn't win, but I'd have to abandon most of the carriage's cargo.
If I had to mind the carriage while fighting him and reduced my spells' power, things could go very wrong.
Step.
Lost deep in thought, the carriage had already entered the dense heart of the forest before I knew it.
Half the distance to the hideout remained ahead.
That's when...
"...Um, Mage-nim."
"Rain is fine."
"Yes, Rain-nim. May I ask something... Doesn't this path seem off?"
The coachman pointed ahead as he spoke.
The path seemed off?
I looked where he indicated, but... though unpaved, it was impeccably neat and tidy, without a single obstruction.
"It looks like a well-maintained mountain trail to me."
"Y-Yes... That's exactly what's strange. Was the path like this when you came?"
"No."
Beth, who had been listening, chimed in.
"The trees seem to have cleared the way... It was blocked before."
"Yes... I've been the coachman for Lockhart Trading Company for ten years now. I've always taken this route whenever leaving the kingdom..."
The coachman cautiously released the reins.
Yet the horse continued naturally along the mountain path.
"A mountain trail guiding us here like this is a first for me."
Indeed. It was a pleasant mountain path unlike the one to the kingdom.
Given the medieval setting, there was no reason for the path to be paved, so the carriage should have been rattling all over.
Yet here was a trail in the middle of the forest, smooth enough for people and carriages alike.
"Where does it seem to be leading the carriage?"
"Ah... It feels like it's guiding us out of the forest. At this rate, we'll exit in no time."
The carriage was indeed moving at a quick pace for a mountain path.
Almost no different from traveling a plain.
It didn't make sense that the black mages were luring us out of the forest...
An ambush would be easiest while we were still inside.
"What do you think?"
I glanced subtly in the direction Beth was facing.
If Beth's instincts had detected something wrong, following the path blindly wasn't wise.
"...No particular thoughts?"
Beth shrugged it off nonchalantly.
Meaning her senses weren't picking up anything unusual.
In that case...
"We'll proceed for now. Getting out of the forest quicker benefits us too."
"Yes... Understood."
This was the forest near the kingdom's border.
Given the location, one person came to mind.
For now, I kept watch on the situation.
No need to refuse if we arrived earlier.
---
Evilblade Ivan.
He had never felt greater joy in his life.
The reason was simple.
"I've finally... finally found you... My great god..."
The statue of Demon God Kanixil that he had searched for his entire life.
He had finally located it.
"As a reward for you lot, I'll bestow His grace first."
Evilblade Ivan muttered while picturing Rain's face.
Thanks to the black mage's death, he knew not just Rain's appearance but even the spells he used.
Ivan stroked the evil sword at his side and sped through the forest.
Though ostensibly a mage, through his pact with the Demon God and endless body modifications, he could match a knight's speed.
Traversing the forest, Evilblade Ivan soon spotted a man.
A massive build with a youthful face. Confirming it matched the appearance from the black mage's lingering thoughts—the same as Rain's—Ivan couldn't contain his surging joy.
"Mage! I've finally found you!"
Hearing Ivan shout, the man hurriedly hid deeper into the forest.
In his hands, he clutched a statue.
"You bastard, that one is *my* god!"
Evilblade Ivan yelled in ecstasy without realizing it.
He drew his sword to cleave the man, but...
Swish.
The man's form rippled and vanished like smoke.
Ivan quickly looked ahead to see the man fleeing into the forest depths.
Fwoosh—
The man raised his hand, and smoke engulfed Ivan.
His vision blurred white in an instant, losing sight of the man, but...
Rustle.
No amount of smoke could mask sound.
Ivan furiously pursued the noise of flight along the forest path.
After chasing for some time...
Step.
The man, who had seemed just within grasp yet always out of reach, finally exhausted his stamina.
He stopped still and turned to face Evilblade Ivan.
"Ivan."
"Mage. You know me?"
Slash—
Ivan swung his sword ferociously with the question, but...
Crack—
A tree trunk that had grown in the interim blocked the evil sword.
Vines sprouted rapidly to entangle Ivan's body, forcing him to leap back and escape.
"If you value your life, return Him to me!"
Evilblade Ivan bellowed while ceaselessly drawing up his mana.
As his mana overflowed from his fingertips, a black liquid soaked the ground.
The surrounding trees and grass began to be slowly corrupted by the black liquid.
"Hand Him over right now! He is not for mere mortals like you to touch!"
"Is that so? Then."
The man gave a small laugh at Ivan's words.
Covering his mouth with his hand like a woman, he soon tossed the statue in his grip to the ground.
Thud. The statue rolled across the dirt.
"Take it. Or should I kick it to you?"
"...Mage. You dare..."
The man seemed to smile briefly at Ivan's words, then...
Boom.
He kicked the statue on the ground.
It flew far off, crashing into a tree.
"You... You dare touch *my god* with your filthy foot!"
Ivan's face flushed beet red with rage.
He glared at the man with madness-filled eyes and wailed.
"I'll cut out your tongue and limbs to offer to my god!"
Ivan's mana spread outward.
Wherever the black mana touched, surrounding lifeforms melted away, drained of vitality.
Ivan's body was already more than half corrupted by the black liquid.
With speed incomparable to before, he charged at the man.
Black smoke enveloped the man to prevent any dodging.
"Die!!"
Slash—!
Ivan's sword cleaved the man in two.
This time, he was surely struck; the man's body slammed into the ground.
But...
"Sis. That's enough."
"Y-Yeah..."
The smoke filling the forest slowly dissipated.
Ivan looked down to see the man he'd cut split in half, but...
Not a drop of blood flowed.
"E-Evilblade Ivan... You black mages pierced the kingdom's second prince, incited a civil war, and killed countless people."
Ivan turned toward the voice.
Atop a space woven from intertwined tree branches sat a woman with purple hair.
Her appearance and the magic she exuded... a witch.
"...Lazy, cowardly witch. Have you finally lost your mind?"
"......"
Ivan continued, his face still burning with unresolved fury.
"The wretch too scared of death to even face the prince. I'll sever your limbs right now and gift them to the second prince. And you."
Ivan pointed at the man standing beside the witch.
"I'll make you speak like a woman, as you wish."
"...Ah. This form is my sister's hobby. It's a doll."
The man brushed his arm casually and continued nonchalantly.
"And... Sis didn't stay out because she was scared. She just can't leave this place. But."
The man placed a hand on the witch's shoulder.
The witch flinched briefly, her body trembling slightly.
As if finding it amusing, the man chuckled shortly and went on.
"This is the witch's domain. And you've walked right into it."
The man tapped the witch's shoulder, prompting her to speak.
"E-Evilblade Ivan. You are now within my domain. Resistance is futile. Beg for mercy."
"Hah. Two worthless mortals dare mock my god? You won't die easy."
Ivan's mana erupted from the ground.
As it devoured the surroundings, sucking away life force, his body began to turn pitch black.
Dark Knight.
The ultimate form black mages attained by offering their souls to Demon God Kanixil.
Gripping his sword, Ivan lunged at the witch with invisible speed and swung, but...
Bang—
"...?"
Ivan's sword hand exploded in midair, scattering into tiny petals carried by the wind.
His body detonated sequentially, crumbling amid swirling black petals.
His headless body floated slowly in the air before...
Thud.
Ivan's neck dropped to the ground.
A flower bloomed beside it.
"...Urk. A black flower, Sis?"
"Yeah... Black mage, so his soul was filthy... right?"
Ilana gave a small laugh at Elana's words.