Chapter 350
Chapter 350
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 350
Chapter Title: Throne Determination Battle: Redburn Territory Explosion Arc - 2
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Yuri Lanster hid in the shadows of an alley, casting a glance at the Redburn mansion in the heart of the ducal territory. Servants bustled busy through the windows. Traditional, prim maid uniforms stood out.
That alone gave her plenty of intel.
Their hurried movements carried a sharp military discipline. No matter how sharp the head maid might be, without a superior on site, the mansion staff wouldn't snap to with that kind of precision.
Even pros took the edge off when the master was away. Which meant... a high-ranking commander was inside.
Be it the duke's proxy or the man himself.
"Hmm."
Duke Maximuss of Redburn's whereabouts remained unknown. Capital? His own lands? Or someplace else entirely? Critical detail.
Mima's whole plan hinged on it, branching wildly depending on where he holed up.
If he was still kicking around that Crown Hall villa, they could just leverage visiting Princess Elaine and Capital Knight Commander Lulu to smash his skull and pin him down. Simplest play to bag the duke.
But he'd know that too. No way a crafty old fox like him missed the shady vibes swirling around the Throne Determination Battle.
He'd slink off to somewhere he could bare his teeth right back at Irid's fangs. Redburn Duchy fit the bill nicely.
Loyal knights at his beck, an army on tap, hordes of territory folk ripe for cannon fodder.
Reason why Yuna—their ace ascension mage—got dropped into the duchy. Highest odds of slugging it out head-on with the duke's crew.
Way to confirm if he was there. Yuri slipped carefully around to the mansion's rear. Short hike toward the back gate, and you'd hit the valet laundry spot.
Roderus, post-doppelganger unlock, had cooked up a maid alias for mansion scut work. Easy ins and outs.
Laundry spot: their preset rendezvous. She'd show here.
Rustle.
Perched in a tree, waiting it out. Three maids trudged up from the mansion with laundry bundles. They scrubbed clothes and dishes in the stream.
No Roderus among them. Even after they wrapped up and headed back, no sign.
"......"
Schedule snag? Or held up?
Or no need to show. Yuri swept the area, soon spotting what looked like Roderus's cipher drop.
A shard etched with code, tucked slyly at the base of a shaded tree trunk, out of sight.
Yuri cracked the first line for verification. Clean decode. Matched their code. She wiped her traces, torched the shard, and bounced.
Brow subtly furrowed. First line screamed trouble.
'Redburn Duke's in the territory. Human sacrifice prep complete.'
Might mean no breather. Nonstop grind ahead.
First, punch an infiltration lane before pulling back. Yuri licked her lips, stepping off. Meal prep maid had to be shuttling in and out...
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Inn room door swung open. Yuri Lanster strode in. Yuna, mid-analysis of territory magic circles from records, lit up.
"Yuri, early... What's that you're carrying?"
"Maid outfits. Three, sized perfect. We suit up, infiltrate. Bribed a servant for entry. Clear shot to the interior, no fights."
"Huh. Did I give you my measurements?"
"Eyeballing's enough. Anyway, linked with Roderus, snagged internals. Here's the rundown."
Yuri spilled. Duke hunkered in duchy core. Transcendence knights thick inside. Duke gunning for ascension via human sacrifice rite.
"Oh, we dug some too. Massive magic circle blanketing the territory..."
Yuna and Selbia laid it out. Giant circle primed to feed on territory souls. Outside dismantle? Time sink, borderline impossible.
"And control room dialing the circle's pace—somewhere in the territory. Calcs check out, it's duke's mansion."
Boils down to...
"No time to waste... Duke finishes rite if we drag. Off him before he juices up."
"Yeah. Roll out. Circle's nerve center's in there anyway—breach mansion to kill it."
Violence it is. Raze the place, dust the duke, and Throne Determination's roadblocks? Zero left.
As Yuna and Yuri geared for scrap, Selbia gnawed a nail, wheels turning. Nagging itch. Missing piece?
Yeah.
"...Territory folk? What about them?"
"Huh?"
"Vibe's duke's golden boy locally. We flambé him, territory erupts chaos. Tower Master's rep tanks too."
"Hmm..."
Selbia nailed the aftermath angle. Smashing foes? Easy. But duke-sized hole? Massive ripple.
Folk clueless on his atrocities. 'Circle's slurping your souls!' Yeah, they'd buy that quick?
To them, lord butchered brutal by Tower Master and crew in power games.
Plus.
"...Right, Roderus inherits duke spot. Looks like outsider muscle coup..."
"Blind spot. Purge Squad tradition: one owns it, gallows-bound. Skipped that."
"Redburn's crawling with crooks fled from elsewhere. Torch duke, knights, guards... Then?"
Chaos inferno on disorder throne.
"Prioritize mass sacrifice block. Fail, duke levels anyway. Ideal: snap neck pre-use."
"Yeah, Roderus on tracker-dagger duty... Local dark mages? He swept 'em. Other stuff..."
Silence hung. Magic bullet? Expose crimes, tamp riots, smooth Roderus handoff, cut body count, all smiles but duke?
Doppel no-witness meta, silent stab meta, Roderus DIY meta—ideas flew, none stuck.
Yuna grumbled, then perked.
"...Poll him?"
"Crazy mage bro prof reachable?"
"Stealth comm too far. Long-range? Billboards our spot to duke."
"Yeah. No direct line. But close enough..."
Tok. Tok.
Yuna tapped air ginger, rift cracking. Post-Tower of Illusion, stability jacked—small scale now doable.
Out popped a crow.
"Caw caw caw. You rang, my lady?"
Speech zone prop from Tower of Illusion. Mima parked the loony bird with Yuna over reclaim.
Yuna cooed to the circling crow.
"Yeah. Situation rundown, wisdom loan?"
"Caw! Gladly!"
Spiel flowed. Crow head-tilted, beak-clacked like calc done.
Then.
"Caw caw! Got it. Main body's take too, with deets. We rig stage—lovely ladies, green light on plan!"
"...What stage?"
"Beast's sins bared to heavens, heir claims birthright!"
Meaning?
Crow, explanation over, flapped out window for setup. Heroines swapped looks, nodded sync.
"Says go, smash it."
"Yeah. Wipe clean. Like it never was."
"Yep. Ashless blaze."
Go signal dropped—no hesitation.
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Three maids slipped Redburn mansion's back door. Baskets slung, alibi: ingredient run, returning.
Maid Yuna whispered.
"Where to?"
"Duke's study, third floor. But underground setup. Sacrifice circle core? Basement bet."
"So we... basement first?"
"Hold. Grill one."
Maid-tripping corridor patter, oncoming maid spotted. New faces? Head tilt. Fresh hires?
Clack clack.
Brushed past. Split second.
"Mmph...!"
Yuri tentacle-snared the maid prey-style, yanked into nearby room. Yuna and Selbia door-blocked.
One minute tops.
Yuri emerged flawless, silent.
"Spotted duke basement-bound. Timely. Neck slice, circle cripple."
"...Sis, no kill?"
"Half-day nap."
Loc pinned. Ambush only. Maid squad corridor-cruised, zapping suspicious stares to snooze swift.
Basement hatch found. Two knights posted—no quiet pass.
Yuri fisted up.
"Break from here. I right guy."
"...Left mine."
"Rear watch me..."
Tat.
『Subtract』
Purple flash: instant collapse
Beeeeng—!
Violet bolt nailed left knight's brow. Instant crumple. Right sensed anomaly, sword half-out—but
Chin.
Snagged mid-draw. Yuri hilt-pinned it. Knight ditched blade for brawl—too slow.
Swish.
"Guhk...!!"
Neck coiled. Mana-fists hammered chest barrage. One, two, three. Crunch.
Enchanted armor shredded under relentless pounding. Junked plate? Yuri jaw-jabbed finisher.
Crack. Neck whiplash, doll-flopped backward.
Weeeooong—!!
Alarms wailed mansion-wide. Yuri boot-kicked door blitz-style, plunged in—Yuna, Selbia tailing.
Basement: dungeon vibes. Passage knights, of course. Trio blitzed Subtracts, fists, Flame Harpoons rampant.
Smooth sailing.
"......"
Smooth to spooky. Off.
Knights underpowered. Zero confirmed transcendence. Thin ranks. Elites sidelined... sloppy?
Roderus MIA nagged too.
Duke ghosted? Nah. Circle controls screamed real. Soul-harvest hub for whole territory.
Ditch that? Suicide.
Bang—!
Yuri boot-nuked final door, deepest core. Glowing complex circle... and Redburn Duke Maximuss...
"Hiiik! Damn—how?! Thought airtight!"
Trembling sob-duke. Yuri forehead-slapped. Duke that pathetic? Verdict swift.
"Fuckin' fake."
"...F-Fake?! Circle's legit though...?!"
"Yup. Knew he wouldn't ditch it—wrong. Baited territory circle to lure, bolted. This scale decoy..."
Prime bait, prime trap.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Overhead stampede. Troops swarming. Entrances corked, territory aces inbound for throats.
Scraaaape.
Yuri suit-shed, transcendence surged. Chains arm-wrapped.
"Yuna, Selbia—stall circle. Troops on me."
"G-Got it. Kill it, then ascension teleport out. Hang on... Huh?"
"......"
Huh? Death knell here. Yuri braced inner. No gripes, whatever snags.
"...Rigged runaway. Max throttle runaway train, yoke smashed..."
"Shit."
Patience snapped.
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Far from Redburn mansion.
Duchy outskirts, dim woods—hidden bunker. Redburn Duke Maximuss eyed red-flick crystal ball. Mansion hit.
Reports rolled. Trespassers: three. Violet Magic Tower Master + operative, academy-ish fire mage.
"Goal demands big cuts sometimes. Roderus, Knight pieces."
"Yes, Your Grace."
Roderus Redburn drew black box chessmen, bowed offer. Duke plucked one, board-stared.
Game on.
Intel stacked post-Trumpet Hall mess. Lamb spilled Violet Master deets, Purge vet + Defense moles on Yuri.
Today—slay 'em, god-throne?
No odds check. Fury blaze. Piece-sealed souls torched mana-pull. Divine smack play.
Clack.